› added 2 months ago

14

TIL that coffee fueled the Enlightenment by providing a safe alternative to contaminated water and alcohol

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via reddit.com

kgpe TIL the Hawaiian Islands were originally named the Sandwich Islands by British explorers after the Earl of Sandwich
baJ9 TIL that the S.S. Minnow, the castaway’s ship in the Gilligan’s Island TV show, was named after FCC chairman Newton Minow, who called television a “vast wasteland.”
6K9J TIL that a cat named Simon served on a Royal Navy ship in 1949, and received a medal for raising morale, killing off a rat infestation and surviving cannon shells during his service. Hundreds attended his funeral when he died from infected wounds.
BgX0y TIL that the modern all-star game spectacle the "Homerun Derby" began as an early days weekly TV show where the best players of the day would compete with many hundreds of dollars at stake.
VNkQ TIL that medieval royal courts had professional farters that were rewarded with houses and land. The most famous was Roland the Farter in the 12th Century or Pujol, who could shoot water up to 5 feet.