› added 11 years ago

161

TIL the US government seized $80 mil worth of gold coins in 2011 that a Pennsylvania middle class family found in their grandfather’s safe deposit box. The coins pre-dated the Great Depression and an order by then President Roosevelt that all gold was to be seized by the government.

Read more rt.com

via reddit.com

QdM6 TIL that you can literally die of a broken heart; Broken heart syndrome, also called stress-induced cardiomyopathy can cause severe heart muscle failure, and can be the result of the severe stress hormones released after serious emotional trauma.
em4k TIL that you might see an illusion or even a creepy monster if you stare at your reflection in a mirror long enough. This phenomenon, known as psychomanteum, dates back to Ancient Greece, where a person would gaze into a still pool of water to communicate with spirits.
4bBN TIL As a knife-wielding assassin jumped out of a crowd of people & lunged toward the President of the Maldives, a quick-thinking Boy Scout who was standing in the crowd in his uniform grabbed the blade & saved the leader’s life. As in the US, the motto of the Maldivian Boy Scouts is: “Be Prepared.”
nj7W TIL that scientists don’t know why hot water freezes faster than cold water, and earlier this year The Royal Society of Chemistry offered £1,000 for a member of the public to come up with a convincing explanation for the phenomenon.
nadd TIL Wilford Brimley, the most famous man with “diabeetis” is a proponent of cockfighting. He has opposed banning the act on grounds of individual rights, and admits to attending various events.