TIL about Chen Tao, a Taiwanese UFO religion. In 1998, its leader predicted that God would appear on U.S. TV and perform miracles, but nothing happened and he later apologized and offered to be stoned or crucified. No one took up the offer.
TIL that there is a "sin tax" on certain goods deemed harmful to society and individuals such as alcohol, tobacco, drugs, candles, soft drinks, fast foods, coffee, sugar and gambling - used to increase prices in an effort to lower demand.
TIL the RMS Olympic (sister ship to the Titanic) was used as troop transport during WW1 and sank a German submarine
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RMS_Olympic#Attack_on_U-103
TIL In US, a radioactive source is lost, stolen, or missing about once a day and become "orphan sources."
TIL the last living grandchild of Queen Victoria, Princess Alice, Countess of Athlone, lived until 1981
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Princess_Alice,_Countess_of_Athlone
TIL webcams were first invented in 1993 as a way to check for coffee at Cambridge University
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trojan_Room_coffee_pot
TIL Daddy Longleggers are not spiders, but opiliones
https://ohioline.osu.edu/factsheet/ent-68
https://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/comments/15mnqg5/til_daddy_longleggers_are_not_spiders_but/
TIL Beefsteak fungus (aka poor man's steak) is actually edible
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fistulina_hepatica?wprov=sfla1
https://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/comments/15mls8x/til_beefsteak_fungus_aka_poor_mans_steak_is/
TIL that large language models (LLMs) work by taking an input text and repeatedly predicting the next token or word. Most notable models include the GPT series.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Large_language_model
https://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/comments/15mlghf/til_that_large_language_models_llms_work_by/
TIL that cheap office chairs literally explode into flames when too much weight is added onto them. (Source: Brew)
TIL Musical Saturist Tom Lehrer released all his music and Lyrics in to the Public Domain in 2007 - and is still alive
TIL humans are considered neotenus apes, meaning we retain juveline characteristics into adulthood
TIL: Oregon had a "whites only" clause in its original state Constitution.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oregon
https://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/comments/15mjw76/til_oregon_had_a_whites_only_clause_in_its/
TIL that "seed laws" are a thing, where you can't use seeds from a plant you bought
https://grain.org/article/entries/5142-seed-laws-that-criminalise-farmers-resistance-and-fightback
TIL A sturgeon's sex can't be reliably determined until 5 years of age, which leaves caviar farms with the significant expense of inadvertently raising males.
https://youtu.be/tdTO75LLs4c?t=123
TIL that the full administrative name of the Austro-Hungarian Empire was "The Kingdoms and Lands Represented in the Imperial Council and the Lands of the Holy Hungarian Crown of St. Stephen"
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Austria-Hungary
TIL Oppenheimer's loss of his security clearance happened 1 day before it was set to expire anyway.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oppenheimer_security_hearing
TIL about oldest known written complaint from a customer named Nanni who received the wrong grade of copper from merchant named Ea-nāṣir. It's estimated at being over 3,800 years old (~ 1750 BC).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Complaint_tablet_to_Ea-n%C4%81%E1%B9%A3ir#cite_note-1
TIL about a federal lawsuit filed against Walmart concerning a stainless steel travel mug bought there. After mango juice had been in the mug for around 10 days, in which fermentation happened, a woman removed the top. It propelled into her face causing jaw injuries
