› added 1 month ago

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TIL that the Americas were named after Italian explorer Amerigo Vespucci, after German mapmakers mistakenly believed he discovered the continents.

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9YXgD TIL that during Napoleon's exile on Saint Helena, no ship could leave the island until the governor laid eyes on him to make sure he doesn't escape. Napoleon sometimes hid just to cause problems to ships trying to leave the harbour
v1plB TIL Ned Vizzini, author of It's Kind of a Funny Story, and various teenage angst books about what makes life worth living and preventing suicide, ultimately committed suicide in 2013, aged 32.
9r8G TIL Japan Wants To Turn The Moon Into A Giant Power Plant
a8EQL TIL that Pope Francis hasn't watched TV since 1990, after making a pledge to the Virgin Mary. It has kept him from watching his favorite soccer team, Buenos Aires-based San Lorenzo. So a member of the Swiss Guard tells him the scores and keeps him up to date on the standings
OG5r4 TIL that mathematician John von Neumann had an unusual ability to solve new problems. When presented with a problem in programming on which there had been no published literature, he said "Oh, that!", then gave a lecture of over an hour explaining how to solve it using a hitherto unconceived theory