Recent comments in /f/todayilearned
wow-how-original t1_j9fl5r9 wrote
Reply to TIL that, as recently as 34 years ago, water from the Great Salt Lake was pumped into the desert so that the lake water level would not get too high. by SoBeefy
Yeah, there were a couple years in the 80s with extreme snowfall and flooding.
tossinthisshit1 t1_j9fl587 wrote
Reply to TIL that Milton Bradley originally had been in the business of selling pictures of celebrities. After his biggest seller Abraham Lincoln grew his iconic beard and rendered his entire stock of lithographs worthless and had customers demanding their money back, MB switched to selling board games by Loki-L
wonder what one of those lithographs would cost today
edwardrha OP t1_j9fkyom wrote
Reply to comment by JohnDunstable in TIL the tradition of naming American tanks after generals was actually started by the British during WW2. by edwardrha
Sherman was a Union general.
SlyFlourishXDA t1_j9fkxsk wrote
Reply to comment by der_innkeeper in TIL of Macadam roads. These roads were convex, raised a few inches, and made of layered crushed rock; they were state-of-the-art for the 19th century. The rise of automobiles led to the dust issues that were solved by binding the roads with tar, leading to the invention of tarmac. by jamescookenotthatone
I grew up on the border of Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia and we pronounce it "mack-adam."
So interesting how words are pronounced differently even within the tristate area.
Infamous-Bison-7044 t1_j9fkxe1 wrote
Reply to TIL that ligers (the offspring of a male lion and female tiger) are the largest big cat because, unlike lionesses, female tigers do not possess growth-limiting genes to counter the growth-maximising genes of male lions. by argh-ok
And the kind of Zoid you don’t want to mess with.
atomfullerene t1_j9fklgs wrote
Reply to TIL of Macadam roads. These roads were convex, raised a few inches, and made of layered crushed rock; they were state-of-the-art for the 19th century. The rise of automobiles led to the dust issues that were solved by binding the roads with tar, leading to the invention of tarmac. by jamescookenotthatone
I always wondered if this word had any relationship to macadamia nuts...turns out they are both named after different people with a last name of McAdam/MacAdam
cnhn t1_j9fkfvf wrote
Reply to comment by InfiniteMothman in TIL that ligers (the offspring of a male lion and female tiger) are the largest big cat because, unlike lionesses, female tigers do not possess growth-limiting genes to counter the growth-maximising genes of male lions. by argh-ok
not for panthera.
the male ligers are sterile, the females are fertile
Odeeum t1_j9fkeof wrote
Reply to comment by monkelus in TIL that ligers (the offspring of a male lion and female tiger) are the largest big cat because, unlike lionesses, female tigers do not possess growth-limiting genes to counter the growth-maximising genes of male lions. by argh-ok
I would have bet my house and children this was the first comment...because it's what I came here to do. Well played.
Hippopotamidaes t1_j9fkbdy wrote
Reply to comment by ouyin2000 in TIL with Scallops, only the abductor muscle is eaten by humans. The rest of the meat, which is edible, may contain a buildup of toxins, and is discarded at sea. by testhec10ck
No. Edibility pertains to “fitness or suitability to be eaten.”
Poisonous foods aren’t “edible” because we’re not fit/suited to eat them.
e_di_pensier t1_j9fk4r2 wrote
Reply to comment by eviltwintomboy in TIL with Scallops, only the abductor muscle is eaten by humans. The rest of the meat, which is edible, may contain a buildup of toxins, and is discarded at sea. by testhec10ck
I’ve never had a raw clam, but absolutely love oysters. What are they like comparatively?
hymen_destroyer t1_j9fjsk3 wrote
Reply to TIL Terry Bradshaw, former NFL quarterback, suffered from post-game anxiety attacks and “frequent crying” by Mysterious_Diver_606
I too suffer from frequent crying. However I’m not a famous athlete, I’m largely a miserable failure of a human being
cnhn t1_j9fjp2a wrote
Reply to comment by RAMPAGINGINCOMPETENC in TIL that ligers (the offspring of a male lion and female tiger) are the largest big cat because, unlike lionesses, female tigers do not possess growth-limiting genes to counter the growth-maximising genes of male lions. by argh-ok
despite the repeated assertions that they are sterile, the answer is more complex.
the male hybrid offspring ligers are generally sterile the female ligers are fertile.
so for example a tiliger is the offspring of a male tiger and a female liger.
it seems most of the great cats have some limited interbreeding, so tigers, lions, jaguars, leopards, and snow leopards.
MonkeyDJinbeTheClown t1_j9fjfyz wrote
Reply to comment by BiggsBounds in TIL that ligers (the offspring of a male lion and female tiger) are the largest big cat because, unlike lionesses, female tigers do not possess growth-limiting genes to counter the growth-maximising genes of male lions. by argh-ok
It's a quote from the movie. Reversed but the same.
BlueCenter77 t1_j9fje5s wrote
hairlessdwarf t1_j9fj2p0 wrote
PokemonSapphire t1_j9fj1oc wrote
Reply to comment by ScrunchyButts in TIL that artificial banana flavoring isn't based on a species of banana that got wiped out, but instead uses Isoamyl acetate to replicate the flavor, which is only part of what gives bananas their distinctive taste. by NoLackofEnthusiasm
I like them overly ripe for banana bread.
oced2001 t1_j9fiy5z wrote
Reply to comment by monkelus in TIL that ligers (the offspring of a male lion and female tiger) are the largest big cat because, unlike lionesses, female tigers do not possess growth-limiting genes to counter the growth-maximising genes of male lions. by argh-ok
Did the local wizards use their magic to keep Nessie safe from the Japanese scientists?
Gurkeprinsen t1_j9fiurr wrote
Reply to comment by Triskitguru in TIL that ligers (the offspring of a male lion and female tiger) are the largest big cat because, unlike lionesses, female tigers do not possess growth-limiting genes to counter the growth-maximising genes of male lions. by argh-ok
Like mules? Are they the cat version of mules?
DocThundahh t1_j9fism9 wrote
Reply to comment by eberkain in TIL Terry Bradshaw, former NFL quarterback, suffered from post-game anxiety attacks and “frequent crying” by Mysterious_Diver_606
Isn’t he battling cancer?
Nappyheaded t1_j9fie8h wrote
Reply to comment by 1945BestYear in TIL that Milton Bradley originally had been in the business of selling pictures of celebrities. After his biggest seller Abraham Lincoln grew his iconic beard and rendered his entire stock of lithographs worthless and had customers demanding their money back, MB switched to selling board games by Loki-L
And as we all know the parcel is too heavy to be carried by swallows
FlebianGrubbleBite t1_j9fidm5 wrote
Reply to comment by [deleted] in TIL that ligers (the offspring of a male lion and female tiger) are the largest big cat because, unlike lionesses, female tigers do not possess growth-limiting genes to counter the growth-maximising genes of male lions. by argh-ok
If that were true humans wouldn't exist. Most humans have DNA from Cross breeding with other species of human like Neanderthal and Denosovens
FloweringSkull67 t1_j9ficvq wrote
Reply to comment by OllieFromCairo in TIL that ligers (the offspring of a male lion and female tiger) are the largest big cat because, unlike lionesses, female tigers do not possess growth-limiting genes to counter the growth-maximising genes of male lions. by argh-ok
Your example of Apple trees is wrong. Apple trees are spliced to get the strain you want. You could have two apple trees of the same type and the the offspring would be a completely different apple.
ScrunchyButts t1_j9fibc6 wrote
Reply to comment by myeff in TIL that artificial banana flavoring isn't based on a species of banana that got wiped out, but instead uses Isoamyl acetate to replicate the flavor, which is only part of what gives bananas their distinctive taste. by NoLackofEnthusiasm
They give me a stomach ache and taste bitter if even a little green. I like them good and ripe.
der_innkeeper t1_j9fhvmg wrote
Reply to TIL of Macadam roads. These roads were convex, raised a few inches, and made of layered crushed rock; they were state-of-the-art for the 19th century. The rise of automobiles led to the dust issues that were solved by binding the roads with tar, leading to the invention of tarmac. by jamescookenotthatone
1500 years after Rome fell we figured out this whole "roads" thing, again.
OllieFromCairo t1_j9fla9u wrote
Reply to comment by FloweringSkull67 in TIL that ligers (the offspring of a male lion and female tiger) are the largest big cat because, unlike lionesses, female tigers do not possess growth-limiting genes to counter the growth-maximising genes of male lions. by argh-ok
You’re responding to something I didn’t say. I didn’t say anything about fruit variety propagation. Malus sylvestris crosses with M. sieversii, M. coronaria and a bunch of other species just fine, producing fecund offspring.
Whether you get a palatable apple from the cross is an unrelated question.