› added 4 years ago

69

TIL the Queen piece in chess was originally a Visier, akin to prime minister. In Europe, according to one theory, it changed to a queen during the 13th century as prominent European Queens (Eleanor of Aquitaine/Blanche of Castile) better reflected the role of a King's source of power and influence.

Read more wikipedia.org

via reddit.com

QZmX TIL that in January of this year, scientists in Antarctica discovered fish and other aquatic animals living in a subglacial lake, beneath a roof of ice 740 meters thick.
VMwE8 TIL Every year in Slippery Rock, Pennsylvania, there's a two-week long mock medieval war that draws so many participants, it has its own mayor and post office for the weeks it is active
7rBBM TIL of the only person in Nevada to die by firing squad. No men were willing to shoot him, so a shooting machine was built to carry out his execution.
N61M TIL although Armand Hammer was part-owner of Arm & Hammer, the company was not named after him and had been operating under that name for 31 years prior to his birth.
GAP14 TIL that Water might not be wet. This is because most scientists define wetness as a liquid’s ability to maintain contact with a solid surface, meaning that water itself is not wet, but can make other objects wet.