Dive Into 95 Mind-Blowing Facts That Will Completely Change How You See the World!
Quite the science fiction premise: it’s 1860s Mississippi but no black people.
TIL: Someone at the National Health Service in England sent a test email to 840000 colleagues and another replied all, resulting in one of the largest reply all storms. 168 million emails were sent between people and caused the health system to be down for half a day.
TIL that the world’s oldest and most prestigious nanny school, Norland College in England, trains nannies in self defense and evasive driving as well as more traditional childcare skills. Jokingly described as “Mary Poppins meets James Bond”, some graduates go on to earn six figures.
TIL that in 2018, the Japanese minister Yoshitaka Sakurada admitted that he had never used a computer in his life… even though he was in charge of the country’s cybersecurity at the time.
TIL when staying as a guest in Charles Dickens’ house, Hans Christian Andersen requested that one of Dickens’ sons give him a daily shave (he said that was customary when hosting male guests in Denmark). Dickens was weirded out and instead gave him a daily appointment at a nearby barbershop.
TIL that in 1996, Mcdonald’s tried to sue the owner of a family owned restaurant located in Fairbury, Illinois that had opened in 1956 called “McDonald’s Family Restaurant” and lost, ironically the owner of “McDonald’s Family Restaurant” is named Ronald McDonald.
TIL Freddie Mercury was born with four extra teeth, causing a prominent overbite. Despite being self-conscious about them, he never got them fixed, believing the extra space in his mouth contributed to his vocal ability. He feared altering his teeth might change his voice.
TIL that in 1984, Steven Tyler and Joe Perry of Aerosmith heard a song on the radio. Tyler liked it and told Perry that they should do a cover version. Perry turned to Tyler and said “That’s us, f*ckhead.” Tyler’s didn’t remember writing or performing their ’75 song “You See Me Crying”
TIL Nike made an ad where a Samburu tribesman said Nike’s slogan “Just Do it” in his native language. An anthropologist called Nike out. The phrase actually meant, “I don’t want these. Give me big shoes.” Nike admitted their mistake and stated “we thought nobody in America would know what he said.”
TIL Octavian, the adopted son of Julius Caesar that would later become emperor Augustus, ordered the k**ling of the only known biological son of Caesar (with Cleopatra) named Caesarion (the last Egyptian pharaoh), following the advice of his companion who said “Too many Caesars is not good”.
TIL about Jesse Heiman, a prolific background extra in tv and film. He has 108 credits including Spider-Man, The Social Network, Transformers, Monk, How I Met Your Mother and many more. It’s believed he is the most recognizable extra in film history.
TIL that after starring as an unemployed man in the 1948 neorealist film Bicycle Thieves, factory worker Lamberto Maggiorani was fired from his real job – his employer assumed the film made him rich, but he was only paid $1,000 and struggled to find work again, mirroring his on-screen character.
TIL the Netherlands Forensic Institute can detect deepfake videos by analyzing subtle changes in the facial color caused by a person’s heartbeat, which is something AI can’t convincingly fake (yet)
TIL the restaurant betrayal scene in the Matrix used a spit bucket for actor Joe Pantoliano, who said rare beef makes him gag. In wide shots they used shiitake mushrooms rigged to look like steak for the actor to eat.
TIL Evel Knievel was fired from his mining job after high school for attempting a motorcycle-type wheelie in a large earthmover but accidentally hit the main power line, knocking out power for Butte, Montana
TIL the “Mona Lisa” wasn’t widely considered a masterpiece until after it was stolen by three handymen; the theft wasn’t even noticed for over 24 hours
TIL that in 1967, the Prime Minister of Albania declared the country the world’s first atheist state, banning all religion.
TIL that English speakers will feel uncomfortable if a pause in conversation lasts for more than 4 seconds. Japanese speakers are comfortable with a pause of up to 8 seconds.
TIL that nearly 40% of all people suffer from cancer in their lifetime
TIL a donkey named Diesel got spooked on a hike and ran off. Five years later Diesel the donkey was spotted among a herd of elk, having assumed an alpha role.
TIL in 2013, reporters dropped 192 wallets across 16 major cities to test honesty. Helsinki, Finland topped the list with 11/12 wallets returned, while Lisbon, Portugal ranked lowest: only 1 out of 12 wallets was returned
TIL Venezuela has by far the biggest proven oil reserves in the world, but produces ~10x less oil per day than the country in second place by proven oil reserves (Saudi Arabia)
TIL the Kong family, descendants of the Chinese philosopher Confucius, have the longest traceable family tree in the world spanning more than 80 generations with over 2 million members
TIL in 1910 Vienna was the third largest city in Europe after London and Paris. By 2025 it still hasn’t reached the same population it had in 1910.
TIL Anthony Borges, the Parkland shooting hero who shielded his classmates with his body, legally owns the rights to the shooter’s name preventing the shooter from granting interviews or make any agreements with film producers or authors without Borges’ permission.
TIL that the creator of VeggieTales mother forbade two things on the show 1. They could not display Jesus as a Vegetable 2. The Veggies can have no redemptive relationship with God
TIL in 1981 Tom Petty voiced his objections when he found out that MCA was going to list his album ‘Hard Promises’ at $9.98 instead of the usual list price of $8.98. After Petty threatened to name the album ‘Eight Ninety Eight’ or to even withhold it entirely, MCA decided against raising the price.
TIL a man was confined to an abandoned container ship with no power for 4 years, after it was detained in Egypt and its owners went bankrupt
TIL that Stephen Stucker, best known for his role as the mad traffic controller in the 1980 movie Airplane, died only six years later to AIDs. He publicly revealed his condition in 1985, making him one of the first popular entertainers to be lost to recently discovered disease. He was 38.
TIL the first yelling at Rocky Horror Picture Show screening happened after 5 months in midnight screening. Upon seeing a character place a newspaper over her head to protect herself from rain, someone yelled, “Buy an umbrella you cheap b***h!”
TIL in 2010 Eminem reported a high score in Donkey Kong of 465,800 with photo proof, which would have put him within the Top 30 worldwide at the time. As of March 2023, his high score ranked 191st in the world.
TIL: AI fever turns Anguilla’s “.ai” domain into a digital gold mine. In 2024, 23% of Anguilla’s entire yearly revenue consisted of selling its national domain name “.ai”.
TIL that U.S. flamethrower units had up to a 92% casualty rate on Iwo Jima, leaving few troops trained to use the weapon
TIL: That Quentin Tarantino kept the only copy of the third act of the script to ‘Once Upon A Time In Hollywood’ in a safe to prevent it from being prematurely released. Brad Pitt later revealed that the only other copy of the script was burned by Tarantino.
TIL: Rather than fiddling while Rome Burned, Nero rushed to the city from his villa to organize the relief effort.
Til that the first president of Turkmenistan banned beards and dogs from the capital, and ordered the closure of all hospitals and libraries outside the capital, stating that the sick should go to the capital for treatment, and that Turkmens did not read anyway
TIL While the Wright Brothers flew in 1903, Gustave Whitehead claims to have flown in 1901. The Smithsonian signed an agreement with the Wright estate that if they acknowledge any flight before the Wright brothers, the Smithsonian loses the Wright Flyer.
TIL in 1816, the United States built a fort to protect itself from invasion by Canada. There was only one small problem: due to a surveying error, it was built in Canada. It was later known as “Fort Blunder”
TIL that Ant Wars are raging around the world between supercolonies of Argentine Ants. Near San Diego, they fight on piles of their dead brethren.
TIL producer Brian Grazer had doubts about making 8 Mile with Eminem when Em was reportedly having an issue with Elton John. However, Tom Hanks convinced him to not drop the movie by responding, “Are you crazy? That’s another character…That’s Slim Shady. He doesn’t even take it seriously”.
TIL that the Arabian desert was also once a lush, green savannah that supported large lakes and abundant wildlife. While it’s well known that the Sahara desert would go through wet and dry periods, there’s now strong evidence that this was also happening on the Arabian Peninsula.
TIL that James Bond actor George Lazenby quit after one film because his agent, Ronan O’ Rahilly, told him the character wouldn’t last through the 70s.
TIL the 1922 Nosferatu movie was ordered by court to have all copies of it destroyed, Bram Stoker’s widow considered it too alike to Dracula and sued over the adaptation’s copyright violation. Some copies survived and Nosferatu went on to become one of the most influential horror films of all time.
TIL the iPad was in development long before the iPhone, despite officially releasing 3 years after the iPhone.
TIL that in 2019, guards at an Oklahoma jail faced a lawsuit after forcing prisoners to listen to ‘Baby Shark’ on repeat for hours.
TIL: Leonidas of Rhodes, ancient Greek runner whose record of most individual Olympic victories was unbroken until 2016 by Michael Phelps
TIL that Brazil in the 30s burned the equivalent of 3 times the annual worldwide consumption of coffee. They chose to burn it instead of selling it cheaply, and managed to cause the price of coffee to rise after the Great Depression. It remains one of the largest supply destructions in history.
TIL two rival scientists in the 1800s waged a petty, sabotage-filled war over who could discover more dinosaurs. They blew up dig sites, bribed workers, and ruined each other’s careers—yet still named over 130 species. It’s called the Bone Wars.
TIL The Beatles, as we know them today, were only together for 8 years (1962 to 1970). In this time they released a staggering 13 studio albums, totaling 213 songs, with over 100 more being released since their break up
TIL after Leo Gao saw that his bank accidentally deposited $10m into his account, he fled New Zealand with his gf & stayed on the run for 2 yrs before being caught. He was paroled after 16 months despite the court assuming that Gao controlled & would have access to the $3.7m that was never recovered
TIL after boxes of booster packs containing unreleased Magic: The Gathering cards were opened online, the publisher Wizards of the Coast sent Pinkerton agents to the home of the presenter to retrieve them. They confiscated 22 boxes after a confrontation that reportedly made the presenter’s wife cry.
TIL that it wasn’t until 30 July 1956 that “In God We Trust” became the official U.S. motto. President Dwight Eisenhower signed a law passed by the 84th Congress, replacing “E Pluribus Unum” (Latin: “Out of many, one”), which has appeared on the Great Seal of the United States since 1782.
TIL about the Agricultural Bank of China robbery, where two bank managers stole US$4.3M to buy lottery tickets, hoping to win enough to repay the theft and keep the rest. They won only US$12.7K, fled, were caught, and eventually executed.
TIL a Georgia lottery winner used his winnings to attempt to build a m**h empire. Less than 18 months later, he was sentenced to 21 years in prison.
TIL scurvy was so common during the Age of Sail that shipowners and governments assumed a 50% death rate from the disease for their sailors on any major voyage.
TIL about the artist Lee Lozano, who as a work of art titled: “Decide to Boycott Women”, refused to speak or interact with other woman. It lasted the last 27 years of her life. She cut off all ties with female friends, family, fellow artists, and long-time supporters of her art.
TIL In 1964, Australia proposed annexing the country of Nauru, relocating the population to Curtis Island (a much larger island), and giving all the people Australian citizenship. Nauru refused.
TIL in 1960 when the book Lady Chatterley’s Lover was on trial for obscenity, the prosecutor Mervyn Griffith-Jones asked the jury “Is it a book that you would even wish your wife or servants to read?” In response, members of the jury broke out in laughter.
TIL the original Fallout 1 & 2 source code was believed to have been destroyed (preventing official re-releases), but a developer secretly defied orders and preserved it. The code still exists today but can’t be released without Bethesda’s approval.
TIL: Radio station KUOW accidentally used an extensionless image for its logo on its stream. This caused Mazda infotainment systems to be permanently stuck on KUOW if it tuned in, because it didn’t know what to do with an extensionless image, requiring a total replacement costing $1500
TIL that TV dinners were invented as a way to use up 260 tons of leftover, frozen turkey that Swanson didn’t know what to do with after Thanksgiving.
TIL after meeting William Woods in 1988, Matthew David Keirans went on to assume Woods’s identity for over 30 yrs. Woods tried to reclaim his identity during this time, but was stopped by Keirans which led to him spending 428 days in jail & 147 days in a psychiatric hospital before being exonerated.
TIL that in 1950 the actor Peter Butterworth, after being a POW during WWII, was rejected from playing a part in the film “The Wooden Horse” about the real escape he helped take place because: “he didn’t look convincingly heroic or athletic enough”.
TIL that Fusako Sano is a Japanese woman who was kidnapped at age 9 and held captive for nine years and two months. Rescued at 19, she was frail and mentally affected by isolation, suffering from PTSD and physical weakness. In 2007, her father drowned in a pond while they were spending time together
TIL about Williams Syndrome, a genetic condition that makes people more friendly and sociable aswell as soemewhat intellectually disabled and results in “elefin” facial features and a host of physical problems.
TIL Douglas Adams conceived the hitchhikes guide while “lying drunk in a field in Innsbruck… Inebriated beneath the swirling stars, clutching a copy of the Hitchhiker’s Guide to Europe, Adams decided that someone should devise a similar guidebook to the whole of the Milky Way.”
TIL that Hans Christian Andersen frequently accompanied his younger Danish friends to Paris brothels, where, while his companions “amused themselves”, he talked to the sex workers
TIL Anendophasia refers to the absence of an internal monologu or inner voice. While not a clinical diagnosis, it’s a concept that describes a specific way of thinking where some individuals don’t experience the constant stream of self-talk that many people take for granted.
TIL that when scientists put a hamster wheel out in the woods, different types of animals seemed to enjoy running on it, including mice, rats, snails, and frogs
TIL that Abu Zayd al-Balkhi (850–934 CE), a Persian scholar, rejected the idea that mental illness was caused by demons or supernatural forces. He recognized conditions like depression and anxiety and argued they had natural psychological and physical causes, centuries ahead of modern psychiatry.
TIL that Steven Spielberg originally requested to use M&Ms for E.T., but Mars responded, saying they needed to see the script before agreeing. Not wanting to share anything about the movie, Spielberg switched to Reese’s Pieces.
TIL in the 1980s, doughnut shops in Southern California started using pink-colored boxes because they were cheaper than plain white boxes due to there being a large amount leftover of pink-dyed cardboard stock just sitting around, taking up warehouse space at restaurant supply company Westco.
TIL That a Contronym is a word that can have two opposite valid meanings, for example Cleave, to split something and also hold on to something, or another example is Bolt, to affix something and also to get away. There are many others.
TIL in 2010 a teenager, who began by bartering an old cell phone on Craigslist with the goal of scoring a dirt bike, ended up continuing to trade up in a series of 14 swaps over 2 years. It eventually ended with him trading a 1975 Ford Bronco (considered a collectible) for a 2000 Porsche Boxster S.
TIL banks keep stacks of bills with dye packs next to a magnetic plate at a bank teller’s workstation. It remains in standby mode until it’s removed from the plate, causing it to become armed. A radio transmitter located at the door triggers an explosion that can reach temperatures of about 400 °F.
TIL JFK was almost assassinated just after his election win due to his catholic faith. JFK was only saved because the attacker didnt want to harm Jackie or kids and couldnt find the president alone .
TIL that the Mongol empire, being the largest land empire to exist, only lasted around 150 years.
TIL the book Progress and Poverty by the economist Henry George, now largely forgotten, was once more widely read than any book except the Bible and was praised by Churchill, Einstein, Tolstoy and others
TIL In 1338, Scottish countess Agnes of Dunbar led the successful defense of Dunbar Castle during a 5-month siege by a much larger English army. At one point, they threatened to k**l her captured brother if she didn’t surrender. She replied that his death would only benefit her as she was his heir.
TIL, The most abundant animal species on Earth is the nematode, also known as the roundworm. There are approximately 57 billion nematodes for every human on Earth. They make up about 4/5 of all animal life.
TIL dental flossing was significantly associated with a lower risk of ischemic stroke in a 2025 study.
TIL because of increasing standards of hygiene the number and size of holes in Swiss cheese declined in the 2000s. In 2025 the Swiss Federal Administrative Court approved the addition of hay flower powder to the milk during cheesemaking just for the creation of cheese holes.
TIL the ‘Naked Gun’ theme played at Leslie Nielsen’s funeral and he chose “Let ‘er rip” as his epitaph as a final reference to his favorite practical joke, a fart machine
TIL before WWII 20% of the entire Jewish global population lived in Poland.
TIL about Dale Schroeder, a man from Iowa who used his life savings to help send 33 kids to college. He never married, had no kids, grew up poor and worked at the same company for 67 years.
TIL about Sadako Sasaki (1943–1955). She was two years old when Hiroshima was bombed and was severely irradiated. She survived for another ten years before dying from leukemia caused by radiation exposure. She is remembered for folding over a thousand origami cranes before her death.
Post Comment