› added 8 years ago

2548

TIL In 1774, Frederick the Great ordered Prussians to grow potatoes as protection against famine, but the populace were disgusted by them and refused. The king then planted “royal potato field” but allowed peasants to steal from it, which re-marketed the potato into a major food crop.

Read more niemann.blogs.nytimes.com

via reddit.com

M7Bea TIL Dr Phil once invited the creator of the BumFights video series on his show to confront him about exploiting vulnerable people for financial gain. Ty Beeson showed up dressed up as Dr Phil and hurled accusations at Dr Phil, claiming he exploited people in similarly difficult situations.
VWn8 TIL your brain makes decisions before you realize it, according to researchers that used brain imaging to predict what choice people would make before they themselves were aware of having made a decision—prompting reconsideration of what we consider “free will”
ewe4 TIL the word “echo” comes from a Greek myth where a nymph named “Echo” was cursed by Hera to only ever be able to say something someone else had just previously said. Hence the meaning of the word.
NXOAN TIL a study followed thousands of people, both with & without OCD, from 1973-2020 & found that those with OCD died at an earlier average age than those without it by 9 years (69 v 78). People with OCD were 230% more likely to die earlier from unnatual causes & nearly 5x more likely to die by suicide
neBZd TIL that among the victims of the Concorde plane crash in 2000 was a 53 year old schoolteacher named Klaus Frentzem, who, along with his wife, had saved up for 20 years to be able to afford tickets.