› added 9 years ago

114

TIL Charles Darwin wasn’t the first choice to go on the voyage in which he theorized the Theory of Evolution. He got the spot because other candidates turned down the captain’s invitation. Meanwhile, the captain just wanted a travel buddy because commanding a ship was very stressful and lonely.

Read more wikipedia.org

via reddit.com

D1GDv TIL about the Bal des Ardents, or the Ball of the Burning Men, a masquerade ball in France in 1393. During the ball, four dancers burned alive when a spectator accidentally brought a torch and set their costumes on fire.
vD64 TIL that U.S. Pres. Andrew Jackson survived an assassination attempt when two separate guns both misfired at near point blank range. Davy Crockett was there to help subdue the assassin and Andrew Jackson was said to have beat the man with his cane.
9wWmM TIL Analtech, the name of a U.S. based manufacturer of glass plates and other accessories, became a liability with the rise of the internet as YouTube videos promoting their products directed viewers to less than wholesome videos and clients reported being blocked by their own security protocols.
1aPl7 TIL that bullet proof vests made of a material called Zylon, and purchased by various federalstate and local agencies, were found to have a failure rate of 58%.
gr6a8 TIL that all of China uses one time zone. On July 1, sunrise in the country’s east is at 3:05 am and sunset in the country’s west is at 10:26 pm. On Jamuary 1, sunrise in the west is at 10:16 am and sunset in the east is at 3:18 pm.