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TIL that upon losing his leg to a cannonball during the Battle of Waterloo, Lord Uxbridge turned to the Duke of Wellington and exclaimed, "By God, sir, I've lost my leg!" The Duke of Wellington simply replied "By God, sir, so you have!"

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6E4El TIL Stalin was hit by a horse-drawn carriage twice as a child, which led to permanent damage of his left arm. This injury exempted him from fighting in WW I where he would have likely died. -
NXMbJ Today I learned Dating to around c. 13,000 BC, a cave painting in the Trois Frères cave in France depicts what some believe is a musical hunting bow used as a single stringed musical instrument and eventually developed into harps, lyres and the modern day electric guitar.
mxYP TIL when Ray Bradbury was 14, he got to know George Burns who encouraged him to write. 30 years later, Ray Bradbury got to meet Burns again to thank him.
neRyP TIL about Bamboo torture where a person would be fixed in place over fast growing bamboo to be impaled over time.
JY181 Did you wake up today with a craving for clay, or dirt? That’s called pica, an abnormal craving for substances other than typical food. If you went ahead and acted on your impulse, it's probably a good idea to head over to your doctor’s office. Research indicates that in most cases this craving is a result of a mineral or vitamin deficiency. This brings us to this week’s Today I Learned, as National Geographic Society grantee and ornithologist Luke Powell explains why macaws regularly munch on South American rain forest clay. Yummy! All animals (including humans) need salt to live. Animals that live in the Amazon rain forest face a curious predicament due to the way the Andes mountain range affects weather coming from the Pacific Ocean. This geography results in an extreme lack of salt in the Amazon and, consequentially, some unique behaviors and appetites.EDITOR: Laurence AlexanderSERIES PRODUCER: Chris Mattle