/r/todayilearned

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TIL about the "Law of Triviality" which states that individuals give disproportionate weight to trivial issues.

1132 upvotes • Olshansk

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TIL at the beginning of WWII some 2,500 generals served in the German armed forces. Many would wear their brightly colored and highly identifiable uniforms and vehicle insignia. This increased “personal battlefield lethality” and was a significant factor in debilitating the German war machine.

1127 upvotes • HamFistedSurgeon

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TIL that ELO, the rating system used in chess and esports is named after its creator Arpad Elo, a Hungarian-American Physics Professor

1114 upvotes • sohoships

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TIL the Pony Express only existed for 18 months. The enterprise began in April of 1860 and ended in October of 1861. The subsidization and implementation of telegraph lines that began 10 weeks after the Pony Express was founded quickly made it irrelevant.

1080 upvotes • kevlarbuns

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TIL about the 1998 Cavalese cable car crash. 20 people in a cable car were killed by US pilots flying too low. They were found not guilty, but later dismissed for having destroyed evidence.

997 upvotes • Tomagatchi

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TIL in 1642, the birth of a "monstrous" one-eyed pig led the townspeople of New Haven, Connecticut to believe a local one-eyed man was the biological father. He was found guilty of bestiality and swiftly executed.

946 upvotes • sanandrios

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TIL that after the Papal States were lost and Rome was annexed to Italy in 1870, the Pope became a self-imposed prisoner within the Vatican. This situation lasted until the Lateran Treaty in 1929, which established Vatican City as an independent sovereign entity.

931 upvotes • ahmadreza777

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TIL that there is a well in England that has water that can turn any object into stone.

929 upvotes • doopityWoop22

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TIL that in 1987, orcas (killer whales) from three different pods in Puget Sound, adopted a trend of wearing salmon as hats.

914 upvotes • LeeQuidity

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TIL a man who survived a jump from the Golden Gate Bridge but broke his back on impact was saved from drowning by a sea lion who kept him afloat until rescuers could reach him.

907 upvotes • doopityWoop22

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Title	Upvotes	Author	Mark as read	Favorited	Rating	Add to a list
TIL about the "Law of Triviality" which states that individuals give disproportionate weight to trivial issues.	1132	Olshansk
TIL at the beginning of WWII some 2,500 generals served in the German armed forces. Many would wear their brightly colored and highly identifiable uniforms and vehicle insignia. This increased “personal battlefield lethality” and was a significant factor in debilitating the German war machine.	1127	HamFistedSurgeon
TIL that ELO, the rating system used in chess and esports is named after its creator Arpad Elo, a Hungarian-American Physics Professor	1114	sohoships
TIL the Pony Express only existed for 18 months. The enterprise began in April of 1860 and ended in October of 1861. The subsidization and implementation of telegraph lines that began 10 weeks after the Pony Express was founded quickly made it irrelevant.	1080	kevlarbuns
TIL about the 1998 Cavalese cable car crash. 20 people in a cable car were killed by US pilots flying too low. They were found not guilty, but later dismissed for having destroyed evidence.	997	Tomagatchi
TIL in 1642, the birth of a "monstrous" one-eyed pig led the townspeople of New Haven, Connecticut to believe a local one-eyed man was the biological father. He was found guilty of bestiality and swiftly executed.	946	sanandrios
TIL that after the Papal States were lost and Rome was annexed to Italy in 1870, the Pope became a self-imposed prisoner within the Vatican. This situation lasted until the Lateran Treaty in 1929, which established Vatican City as an independent sovereign entity.	931	ahmadreza777
TIL that there is a well in England that has water that can turn any object into stone.	929	doopityWoop22
TIL that in 1987, orcas (killer whales) from three different pods in Puget Sound, adopted a trend of wearing salmon as hats.	914	LeeQuidity
TIL a man who survived a jump from the Golden Gate Bridge but broke his back on impact was saved from drowning by a sea lion who kept him afloat until rescuers could reach him.	907	doopityWoop22