› added 4 years ago

72

TIL that Thomas Jefferson actually helped suppress efforts to abolish slavery as president of the United States

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b9Ddp Today I learned that the slang word “stan” originates from an Eminem song of the same name, a portmanteau of “stalker” and “fan”. The connotation was originally negative.
MlG7 TIL That an orangutan at the Henry Doorly Zoo in Omaha Nebraska had learned to pick locks with a piece of wire that he had hidden in his mouth.
6EM07 TIL almost all life on earth was destroyed around 2.4 billion years ago in the Oxygen Catastrophe (aka Great Oxidation Event). Photosynthesizing microorganisms pumped massive amounts of oxygen into the previously oxygen-poor atmosphere, making it oxygen rich. Most species perished, new ones arose.
wLlDP TIL the Yellow Rose of Texas is about a woman who is “high yellow” referring to a bi-racial or light skinned brown person.
wVo8 TIL that in 1987, 7 million american children vanished. Cause? The IRS started requiring the Social Security Numbers of dependents on tax forms