› added 1 year ago

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TIL that the Michelin Man is white because tires were typically white, beige, or grey when the mascot was created in 1894. In 1912 tire manufacturers started adding carbon to their tires which gave them a black colour that is known today.

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jNvvX TIL: Gregory the Great- 6th Century Pope (and Saint) wrote of Mary Magdalene as a prostitute, despite there being no record of this in Scripture. Contemporary scholars agree that Mary Magdalene was likely an upper class woman who supported Jesus Christ- but not necessarily a prostitute.
RLpa TIL a 12-country coalition of African nations is working together to build the ‘Great Green Wall of Africa’, an unprecedented organic barrier to span nearly 5,000 miles across the continent and combat the relentless spread of desertification
JYWp8 TIL about the Ħal Saflieni Hypogeum in Malta. Accidentally discovered in 1902, the hypogeum is believed to predate the pyramids by up to 1000 years according to historians. It housed up to 7000 bodies of an unknown Neolithic civilisation who mysteriously disappeared in 2500 BC without explanation
JYVyQ TIL In 1880, Queen Sunanda Kumariratana, her daughter and her unborn child drowned as the royal guard watched, because in Siam touching a member of the royal family was punishable by death. The guard was later put to death for being too strict. Even if he'd saved her, he would've been killed anyways
N78Ae TIL that water bottles can be an effective weapon, esp. for assault.