/f/todayilearned
TIL in 1962 a General Electric engineer named Nick Holonyak developed the first LED light bulb capable of emitting visible red light. The same bulb was used in the 1964 stop animation animated TV special Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer for Rudolph’s bioluminescent nose.
smithsonianmag.comSubmitted by undergroundgeek t3_zr9n8b
Submitted by Socketlint t3_zvbycz
Submitted by One_aspect_ t3_zu8yc3
TIL that yet another Christmas tradition, the burning of the Yule log for good luck, predates European Christianity and has its roots in paganism. Yule log burning is rooted in Germanic or Scandinavian paganism and associated with winter solstice rituals
sttammanylibrary.orgSubmitted by thepronoobkq t3_zv6p8m
Submitted by darth_nadoma t3_zubeqt
TIL one of the first use of avant-garde technique of tape manipulation in music was the 1955 hit "Jingle Bells" by The Singing Dogs. Using a razor, Carl Weismann cut, then spliced sounds of dog barks together, correcting speed, pitch and melody of the resulting tape. It reached #22 on Billboard.
en.wikipedia.orgSubmitted by Bubbly-Incident t3_zukh8j
TIL the song 'Human Nature' by Michael Jackson was originally written by the band Toto for their album, 'Toto IV'. The only reason the song officially became Michael's is because Quincy Jones heard Toto's demo of the song and suggested that it would fit better on Michael's album, 'Thriller'.
en.wikipedia.orgSubmitted by EQOA_Fanatic t3_zq8coy
TIL of Jeanne de-Valois-Saint-Rémy, a frenchwoman con-artist who tricked a Cardinal into buying a $15.1m diamond necklace pretending to be a confident of Marie Antoinette. This led to irreparable reputational harm to the Crown, bringing further support to the French Revolution.
en.wikipedia.orgSubmitted by DoctorKynes t3_zsu84j
TIL that a dump truck caused a New York City elevated freeway to collapse in 1973. The truck was found to have been 9 tons overloaded and the company operating it was blamed. The contract to clean up the results of the failure was subsequently awarded to the same company.
en.wikipedia.orgSubmitted by iAmAddicted2R_ddit t3_zusp5k
Submitted by DEEP_HURTING t3_zr1wpr