› added 13 years ago

120

TIL Christmas is often spelled Xmas because the Greek letter Chi (χ) is used to abbreviate the name Christ.

Read more wikipedia.org

via reddit.com

WkkMY TIL During his 2009 TED talk, Bill Gates opened a jar of mosquitoes saying “Malaria is spread by mosquitoes. I brought some… I’ll let them roam around. There is no reason only poor people should be infected” & waited for ~a minute before telling the audience that the bugs were malaria-free.
wZZ7 TIL 90% of US LSD was once produced at Bexley, a dorm on MIT campus. When the FBI raided the building, they were greeted with a plate of milk and cookies, but no lab.
nM0P TIL that NBA players do not tend to come from poverty. Contrary to stereotype, “Growing up in a wealthier neighborhood is a major, positive predictor of reaching the N.B.A.” Black NBA players are about 30% less likely to have an unwed or teenage mother.
XZMD TIL In 2005 an innocent man was pinned to the ground by British police and shot 7 times in the head point blank thinking he was a suicide bomber and later tried to cover it up.
DmMv TIL: After filming ELF, Will Ferrell gave James Caan the GODFATHER trilogy with a note saying “Great working with you. The first one is a little bit slow, but the second two are really good.”