› added 3 years ago

98

TIL that Formosa Province in Argentina is the antipode with Taiwan, which was historically also known as Formosa. European sailors speaking different languages gave the same name to two areas at exact opposite points of the Earth.

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g6X TIL that Caroll Spinney has played the Big Bird in Sesame Street since 1969, starring in 4300 episodes in 43 seasons which are 60 minutes long each, earning 8 Grammy Awards and 118 Emmy Awards.
awry9 TIL that a new species of bird was discovered in 1894 by David Lyall, but his pet cat Tibbles killed them off
b9pO4 TIL Thomas Jefferson is credited with introducing macaroni and cheese to America, after encountering the pasta on a trip to Paris
m1GOx TIL on hearing that the doctor asked for 10 men to hold him down so he can amputate his leg, Italian mercenary Giovanni Delle Bande Nere cheerfully declared "not even 20 could hold me" and grabbed a candle to see his leg better. After the operation, still gleeful, he declared "I am healed!"
VrgG TIL that Axe advertising was targeted to work on insecure males. The ads were so succesful that the brand eventually backpedaled, as the brand was being too closely associated with their target group.