› added 5 years ago

135

TIL scientist Henry Cavendish suffered from extreme shyness “bordering on disease”. He discovered several laws not attributed to him because of this shyness. Had secret staircases in his home to avoid his housekeeper -females caused him “extreme distress” and devised a note system to talk to her.

Read more lonerwolf.com

via reddit.com

l78Xa TIL that Nelson Mandela’s wife supported torturing and killing opponents
QN0Pd TIL George Clooney sent the original Ocean's 11 script to Julia Roberts with a $20 bill on it, writing, "I hear you get 20 a picture now." He was referring to Roberts' per-movie rate of $20 million at the time. Roberts was amused with the joke and signed on to star.
1OkP TIL that Ghengis Khan’s conquests killed so many people, it increased the oxygen in the Earth’s atmosphere.
9w6ND TIL that to protect bumblebees, the California Endangered Species Act (1984) classified bumblebees as fish, on the grounds that the definition of fish included the term "invertebrate", which bumblebees also are.
R7pV7 TIL that if you're seated in the rear of a modern jumbo jet, the walk to your seat is longer than the Wright Brothers' 120 ft first flight.