› added 6 years ago

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TIL that the name of the company LEGO comes from the Danish phrase "leg godt", which means "play well". Interestingly, the Latin word "lego" means "I put together", but this is just a coincidence - when LEGO first started, it only made wooden toys.

Read more lego.com

via reddit.com

9wrrM TIL that in 2007 it was announced that U2 were involved in a project to build the U2 Tower, an apartment building in Dublin which also housed their recording studio. It would have been the tallest building in Ireland if completed but it was cancelled due to the 2008 economic downturn in the country.
nWjer TIL language can affect how we perceive color. This was studied in the Himbas tribe, who have a measurably difficult time distinguishing between blue and green, because they use the same word to categorize both.
kOwdB TIL of Harry Yee, a Hawaiian bartender who created the Blue Hawaiian drink, was the first person to use paper parasols and orchids in mixed drinks, and helped popularize Tiki culture in the United States. He started bartending in 1952 and is still alive today at the age of 100.
AAJo TIL that an alcohol’s “proof” was meant to measure whether it been watered down. The “proof” (approximately 100) of good booze was that it would catch on fire.
e06m4 TIL of Aki Ra, a former Khmer Rouge conscripted child soldier who has devoted his life to removing landmines in Cambodia and to caring for young landmine victims. Since 1992 he has personally removed and destroyed as many as 50,000 landmines, and is the founder of the Cambodian Landmine Museum.