/f/todayilearned
Submitted by MohammadRezaPahlavi t3_zuqwmn
TIL about Operation Bernhard. During WWII, Germany attempted to bring about the collapse of the British economy by forging ≈£130 million in British bank notes. The notes are considered among the most perfect counterfeits ever produced, and are very difficult to differentiate from legitimate notes.
en.wikipedia.orgSubmitted by rkadeYT t3_xwv3hr
TIL the Great Pyramid of Giza is not the largest pyramid in the world, Great Pyramid of Cholula, also known as Tlachihualtepetl, is the largest archaeological site of a pyramid in the New World, as well as the largest pyramid by volume known to exist in the world today.
en.wikipedia.orgSubmitted by Mind-Matters-Not t3_z109pu
TIL a German scientist named Alfred Wegener was ridiculed in 1912 for advancing the idea that the continents were adrift. Ridiculed as having “wandering pole plague.” or “Germanic pseudo-science” and accused Wegener of toying with the evidence to spin himself into “a state of auto-intoxication."
britannica.comSubmitted by Hot----------Dog t3_xur1gi
Submitted by MoreTacoPie t3_10dxv1x
TIL to decide what measurement system America should use, John Quincy Adams took 3 1/2 years to produce a 268 page Report on Weights and Measures that ultimately concluded changing to the French metric system would be too difficult for the young nation. Congress took no action on the report.
shannonselin.comSubmitted by iamveryDerp t3_10m91c7
TIL that in 2005 burglars stole $71.6 million from a bank in Fortaleza, Brazil by setting up a fake landscaping company near the bank and digging a 256ft tunnel beneath two city blocks to the bank over 3 months. Neighbors noticed vanloads of soil removed daily but assumed it was business-related.
en.wikipedia.orgSubmitted by Lagavulin16_neat t3_ya4qel
TIL Tolkien assisted on the Oxford Dictionary's first edition, focused on 'W' words waggle to warlock. He "learned more in those two years than in any other"; and certain etymologies continued to puzzle him for years, with many pages of notes written later on 'walrus' for a lecture at Leeds
public.oed.comSubmitted by PianoCharged t3_11c604h
TIL the first known résumé was written by Leonardo da Vinci, when applying to be a military engineer for the Duke of Milan. It's mainly just a list of his designs for siege weapons (including trebuchets). He briefly mentions his art: "In painting, I can do everything possible." He got the job.
lettersofnote.comSubmitted by Pfeffer_Prinz t3_10jfshm
TIL a special law in the UK was created to ensure that the Great Ormond Street Children's Hospital will forever be able to collect royalties from stage performances, audiobooks, book releases, etc. of Peter Pan in the UK. This is the only work with an 'exception' to copyright laws.
gosh.orgSubmitted by [deleted] t3_126e6pb
TIL Ernest P. Worrell (Ernest Saves Christmas et al.) & Vern were originally created by advertising company Carden & Cherry to promote various local and national brands. Due to the commercials popularity, an Ernest television show and ten movies were made, knowwhatimean?
en.wikipedia.orgSubmitted by OptionalPlayer t3_zztsji