› added 5 years ago

179

TIL Four babies are born every second

Read more bbc.co.uk

via reddit.com

0wmOL TIL: manatees are very social animals, to the point where it is quite common for them to come up to divers and swimmers for a quick belly rub!!!
ANwvB TIL about the phrase "Sick as a Parrot" which unlike the one I know "Sick as a dog" is apparently reference to being disappointed or sad because you aren't "bright and beautiful" from a 1682 comedy. Apparently it used to be common in the UK - I'm so excited to learn it!
jyeQ TIL that Samuel L. Jackson was supposed to have an afro in Pulp Fiction. He was losing his hair so needed a wig. A PA went to get an Afro-style wig. The PA mistook the Afro for Jheri curls. Before they were able to return it, Jackson convinced Tarantino to keep it so he ended up wearing Jheri Curls.
v17VB TIL Tu Youyou discovered artemisinin and dihydroartemisinin, used to treat malaria, a breakthrough in twentieth-century tropical medicine, saving millions of lives. She is described as “almost completely forgotten by people”.
BrLRy TIL: about Gain Of Function research, or the modification of dangerous viruses to become deadlier and more transmissible. Advocates argue it can help ready us to identify pandemics easier, critics say we're risking millions of lives. A moratorium on GoF research was ended in 2019.