› added 11 years ago

99

TIL that J. R. R. Tolkien, in a letter to his son Christopher, referred to World War 2 as the “War of the Machines,” and remarked that machines would be “the only victor.” He was highly critical of the harsh tactics employed by either side during the conflict.

Read more wikipedia.org

via reddit.com

p8M5p TIL that figs are pollinated by wasps that die inside the fig. Actually I learned this a month ago and have looked inside every fig I’ve eaten since, in the hopes of finding a dead wasp or wasp parts. No luck yet.
R51A7 TIL It's not good to feed pigeons in public parks as it significantly increases droppings that can leads to environmental hazards such as serious breathing issues/lung infections in nearby humans.
Oo1M4 TIL of Du Yuesheng, a Triad boss who was granted the rank of general in the Nationalist Chinese army after he ordered his gang to massacre 1000s of communist supporters. He then became head of the Opium Suppression Bureau, which he used to seize opium to be sold by his own criminal organization.
rYbw TIL you were never originally supposed to earn a free Tootsie Pop if your wrapper contained 3 full circles or the indian shooting a star. This was just a rumor that many store owners honored.
ADPed TIL in "Goodfellas", Robert DeNiro learned details about the real Jimmy Burke. He found that Jimmy loved ketchup, and how he poured it-because dispensing ketchup out of a glass bottle was a common problem then. The "spin" technique is what he used in the film, the way the real Jimmy did.