/f/todayilearned
TIL that “Firehawks” a collection of three Australian bird species, are the only animals besides humans known to use fire to hunt. They will pick up burning sticks from fires and carry them in their beaks and talons before dropping it in unburnt vegetation setting the ground ablaze driving prey out.
wildlife.orgSubmitted by TodAllen-99 t3_122kgtb
TIL of the Bolvano Train Disaster which claimed the lives of more than 500 people in 1944. After the train became stalled in a tunnel, the passengers and crew succumbed to carbon monoxide poisoning when the locomotives attempted to continue and filled the tunnel with smoke.
en.wikipedia.orgSubmitted by MorsOmnibusCommunis t3_121pqvz
Submitted by Blackmere t3_1202vfv
Submitted by 4m2r0s t3_122bb55
TIL the earliest known account of Christianity from a non-Christian source is a letter (112 AD) of Pliny the Younger to Emperor Trajan, asking for advice on dealing with a new and 'extravagant superstition' that had spread to several cities in Northern Turkey.
en.wikipedia.orgSubmitted by SvanteArrheniusAMA t3_121w189
TIL that the 'funny bone' is not actually a bone in the arm, but a nerve. The ulnar nerve is connected from shoulder to hand and is protected by bones and muscles. As it passes thru the elbow it is only protected by the cubital tunnel, making it the most prone area in the body to 'strike a nerve'.
webmd.comSubmitted by deddPan t3_11xvao6
TIL that the Hemlock Water Dropwort is the most poisonous plant in the UK. Its poison constricts the muscles, causing death by asphyxia, which also causes a rictus like death grin. Use of this plant in Phoenician Sardinia for executions is the origin of the term "Sardonic Grin".
wildfooduk.comSubmitted by AspireAgain t3_11zroqu
TIL: A sex toy maker agreed to pay customers up to C$10,000 each for selling a “smart vibrator,” which tracked owners’ use without their knowledge. Two hackers had demonstrated the company was collecting information about users, including device temperature and vibration intensity.
theguardian.comSubmitted by theotherbogart t3_121oi52
TIL: The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers drained Niagra Falls in 1969. It ended up attracting more visitors than any other feat attempted at the falls. The engineers wanted to find a way to remove the unseemly boulders that had piled up at its base since 1931, cutting the height of the falls in half...
smithsonianmag.comSubmitted by floof_mcgenius t3_120pskx
TIL that Liza Minelli, daughter of Judy Garland, the actress who played Dorothy in the 1939 MGM film, “Wizard of Oz,” was once married to Jack Haley, Jr., son of Jack Haley, the actor who played the Tin Man in the same film. He was Minnelli’s 2nd husband.
en.wikipedia.orgSubmitted by TheMadIrishman327 t3_120kisk