r/todayilearned • u/Ainsley-Sorsby • 1d ago

TIL Part of N.Machiavelli's diplomatic mission to Cesare Borgia included sending intel back to his government, even down to Borgia's personal habits. He noticed that he had inhuman energy and could go several nights working sleepless but occasionaly would "fall to his bed" and refuse to see anyone

en.wikipedia.org

9.5k Upvotes

130 comments

r/todayilearned • u/InsertaGoodName • 1d ago

TIL that in Season of Glass, Yoko Ono’s first album after the murder of her husband John Lennon, the front cover features Lennon's bloodstained glasses which were worn on the day of his death.

en.wikipedia.org

721 Upvotes

101 comments

r/todayilearned • u/Super_Goomba64 • 1d ago

TIL that in the United Kingdoms Parliament, there is a box of snuff (smokeless tobacco) that's been around since the 1600s, it is free for government officials to use, but the last time it was used was 1989. It is still kept to this day

en.wikipedia.org

331 Upvotes

55 comments

r/todayilearned • u/WifeOfSpock • 1d ago

TIL that almond milk has been consumed and used as an ingredient in food since medieval times.

secondshistory.com

1.0k Upvotes

63 comments

r/todayilearned • u/tweedlebeetle • 21h ago

TIL that in 1960 more U.S. homes had TVs than indoor plumbing

brainly.com

64 Upvotes

20 comments

r/todayilearned • u/jacknunn • 1d ago

TIL Heard Island and McDonald Islands contain Australia's only two active volcanoes

en.wikipedia.org

171 Upvotes

22 comments

r/todayilearned • u/tyrion2024 • 2d ago

TIL with his dad totally against it, 19-yr-old Fabio Lanzoni moved to the US & within 48 hrs of arriving he walked into the Ford modeling agency without an appointment & walked out with a $150K contract. The next day he was hired for the launch of Gap Inc. Then began to pose for 15 book covers a day

en.wikipedia.org

43.1k Upvotes

1.0k comments

r/todayilearned • u/hot-java • 1d ago

TIL about the Great Stalactite Organ created over three years by Leland W. Sprinkle at the Luray Caverns in Virginia by finding and shaving certain stalactites to produce specific notes. Recordings were sold on vinyl and cassette and can be found online and through music streaming services.

en.wikipedia.org

96 Upvotes

19 comments

r/todayilearned • u/shiftctrlc_rosebud • 18h ago

TIL that shyness can be attributed to reduced daylength during gestation

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

23 Upvotes

6 comments

r/todayilearned • u/bellbros • 1d ago

TIL that static shocks can involve tens of thousands of volts, and even several amps of current, but don’t hurt you because they last only millionths of a second.

metroid.net.au

3.3k Upvotes

166 comments

r/todayilearned • u/Blackraven2007 • 1d ago

TIL that Sam Houston is the only person to have served as the governor of 2 U.S. states, with him serving as the 6th governor of Tennessee from 1827-1829, and as the 7th governor of Texas from 1859-1861.

en.wikipedia.org

1.1k Upvotes

20 comments

r/todayilearned • u/Far-Post-4816 • 2d ago

TIL there is no evidence that a first responder has actually experienced an fentanyl overdose from accidental exposure

pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

14.1k Upvotes

692 comments

r/todayilearned • u/Chocolatestarfish33 • 1d ago

TIL there is a land dwelling crayfish native to Wisconsin

apps.dnr.wi.gov

76 Upvotes

14 comments

r/todayilearned • u/MyNameIsMantis • 2d ago

TIL That the last time all living humans were on Earth simultaneously was October 31st, 2000. Since that day, there has always been astronauts in space.

americaspace.com

7.9k Upvotes

72 comments

r/todayilearned • u/ipresnel • 2d ago

TIL that in 1989 Val Kilmer punched and threw actress Caitlin O’Heaney to the floor during an audition for the lead female role of The Doors. There was not any punching in the scene Oliver Stone laughed about it and the company wrote her a check for $24,500 to not discuss the allegations publicly.

indiewire.com

25.6k Upvotes

1.9k comments

r/todayilearned • u/Godfrey174 • 2d ago

TIL of Floyd Collins, a cave explorer in 1925 who got trapped. During rescue attempts hundreds of cave explorers and tourists stood outside the cave. The cool air caused them to light campfires that disrupted the ice within the cave. Directly causing the cave passage to collapse leading to his death

en.wikipedia.org

5.3k Upvotes

236 comments

r/todayilearned • u/Fit-Farmer7754 • 1d ago

TIL in 1961, astronomer Frank Drake created the Drake Equation, a formula to estimate the number of communicative alien civilizations in our galaxy, sparking the modern search for extraterrestrial life.

seti.org

260 Upvotes

137 comments

r/todayilearned • u/1900grs • 1d ago

TIL in 1950 only 9 percent of American households had a television set, but by 1960 the figure had reached 90 percent.

guides.loc.gov

1.0k Upvotes

61 comments

r/todayilearned • u/TriviaDuchess • 2d ago

TIL During courtship, the male Pigeon Mountain Salamander circles the female and bites her repeatedly to break the skin on her head. He then rubs a chin gland over the wounds, injecting pheromones directly into her bloodstream to subdue her enough for mating.

bioone.org

16.5k Upvotes

287 comments

r/todayilearned • u/Hairy_Ghostbear • 1d ago

TIL that on 10th February 1890 an estimated 180,000 mummified cats, weighing 19.5 tons, were shipped from Egypt to Liverpool, auctioned, and sold for fertilizer

liverpoolmuseums.org.uk

243 Upvotes

43 comments

r/todayilearned • u/Eastern_Ad_2338 • 1d ago

TIL that there was a short film created after "Oz" ended focusing on the dealings of two of the surviving prisoners

youtu.be

23 Upvotes

19 comments

r/todayilearned • u/TarantusaurusRex • 1d ago

TIL Italy is home to the “World Capital of Ugly People,” where an official club celebrates ugliness with festivals, rankings, and a satirical "No-Bel" Prize. And you can apply to be assessed for membership.

theparisreview.org

357 Upvotes

15 comments

r/todayilearned • u/blankblank • 2d ago

TIL a New Haven colonist was accused of bestiality in 1647 when a neighborhood sow gave birth to piglets that allegedly resembled him. Called "the most interesting buggery case" ever, it left an enduring mark in the history of capital punishment.

en.wikipedia.org

5.6k Upvotes

197 comments

r/todayilearned • u/Not_so_ghetto • 2d ago

TIL Minnesota’s has lost more than 50% of their moose populations since the mid-2000s, with a brain worm being one of the main factors leading to their deaths.

minnesotareformer.com

6.3k Upvotes

150 comments

r/todayilearned • u/TriviaDuchess • 1d ago

TIL in only two seasons in Oakland, the American Basketball Association Oakland Oaks won 28% of their games the first year and 77% in their second, including the 1969 ABA Championship. The main difference was Rick Barry, who joined for one year after a salary dispute with the NBA’s Warriors.

en.wikipedia.org

55 Upvotes

1 comment

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This list was compiled from /r/todayilearned community suggestions by its members. If your TIL is found on this list, it will be removed. The titles have been abridged for the sake of brevity, however the context remains the same. This list is subject to change. The purpose is to keep content fresh on /r/todayilearned as requested by its members. If you are interested in reading about the TILs on this list use the search box feature and enter the keywords to pull up past TILs.

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