TIL that in 1976, the BBC refused to broadcast most races of the F1 season, because the backmarker team Surtees was sponsored by Durex. This meant that the British almost completely missed the season where Englishman James Hunt became World Champion because of a sponsor
https://www.bbc.com/sport/formula1/35748458
TIL the upper survival time limit of properly stored seeds remains unknown. The oldest viable seed that has grown into a full plant was an about 2,000 years old Judean date palm seed
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orthodox_seed
TIL that Bruno Mars' debut album, Doo-Wops & Hooligans, released in 2010, is still on the Billboard 200 album chart
https://slate.com/podcasts/hit-parade
TIL pilots in the 30s-40s navigated their aircraft using Morse code. The "low-frequency radio range" navigation system played letter A to tell pilots to turn left, N to turn right, and a steady tone to go straight. Pilots listened to Morse code for hours. It was prone to giving wrong directions.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Low-frequency_radio_range
TIL: There is a market for Rare Antique Spoons, with one used by Paul Revere Jr selling for $32,500. This mainly applies to 100+ year old spoons that were handcrafted and contain a Silversmith's mark. Old antique spoons also have unique patterns and fanciful designs (images in article).
TIL that “acclimation societies” used to intentionally introduce non-native species into new environments. House sparrows and starlings were introduced to the US this way. There are now 200 million starlings in North America, and they are listed as one of the 100 worst invasive species.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Acclimatization_Society
https://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/comments/15mecjj/til_that_acclimation_societies_used_to/
TIL that Penicillin , the first widely used antibiotic was an Accidental discovery by Alexander Fleming .
https://www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/objects-and-stories/how-was-penicillin-developed
https://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/comments/15md8s3/til_that_penicillin_the_first_widely_used/
TIL that Django from Django Unchained was written as an ancestor of the blaxploitation character Shaft
TIL That ALL Peppers Are Fruits
https://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/comments/15m3mhz/til_that_all_peppers_are_fruits/
TIL that most of the 100,000 French soldiers evacuated at Dunkirk were quickly sent back to France. About half of them ended up redeployed against the Germans before the French surrender, and many were subsequently killed or captured.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunkirk_evacuation
https://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/comments/15m1qte/til_that_most_of_the_100000_french_soldiers/
TIL the house where Winnie The Pooh was written and Brian Jones (The Rolling Stones) died is now an Air B&B!
TIL ; Illegal child labor is on the rise in a tight job market | CNN Business
https://edition.cnn.com/2023/07/30/economy/child-labor-louisiana-texas/index.html
TIL that during WW1 the British government outlawed the act of buying somebody else a drink with the “No treating order”
https://blog.nationalarchives.gov.uk/pubs-vs-first-world-war/
https://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/comments/15lz0ib/til_that_during_ww1_the_british_government/
TIL The United States military invaded Canada in 1812. US lost
https://www.warmuseum.ca/cwm/exhibitions/chrono/1774invasion_repelled_e.html
TIL there is an esport league for Microsoft Excel
TIL that in the 1700's there was a plan to build a church into the Colosseum in Rome
TIL that US dimes, quarters, half dollars and dollar coins were minted in 90% silver until 1964, but this was changed to nickel and copper starting in 1965 because the price of silver had risen to a point where the coins were worth more in silver than their face value.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silver_coin
https://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/comments/15lwq2v/til_that_us_dimes_quarters_half_dollars_and/
TIL that there's small amount of nicotine in potatoes and a few other veggies...
https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/nejm199308053290619
https://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/comments/15lwcr2/til_that_theres_small_amount_of_nicotine_in/
TIL The Grateful Dead's "In The Dark" album was an unexpected smash hit in '87. All the songs on the album were at least five years old and the band had been playing and perfecting them live on stage for years before they finally recorded the album. 'Touch of Grey' was the band's only top 40 single
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/In_the_Dark_(Grateful_Dead_album)#Track_listing
