TIL that the format of the British quiz show "Mastermind" was inspired by the interrogation techniques of the Gestapo
https://ift.tt/FHDCjon
Submitted January 18, 2026 at 12:39PM by TooOldToBePunk
via reddit https://ift.tt/8aV1ieF
https://ift.tt/FHDCjon
Submitted January 18, 2026 at 12:39PM by TooOldToBePunk
via reddit https://ift.tt/8aV1ieF
the Guardian
Mastermind seeks more women
Between 1,500 and 2,000 people undergo auditions for BBC quiz Mastermind every year, but only a quarter are female. By Owen Bowcott.
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TIL that astronomers suggest Earth and the Milky Way may lie inside a vast, under-dense cosmic void about 1 billion light-years wide, which could affect local measurements of the universe’s expansion rate.
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Submitted January 18, 2026 at 03:00PM by yena
via reddit https://ift.tt/CS31pDE
https://ift.tt/7PLaWHI
Submitted January 18, 2026 at 03:00PM by yena
via reddit https://ift.tt/CS31pDE
BBC Science Focus Magazine
Earth may be trapped inside a giant void in space, say scientists | BBC Science Focus Magazine
Earth and the Milky Way could be floating in a billion lightyear wide void – a discovery that could help decipher one of the biggest mysteries in cosmology
TIL While on trial by the oligarchic regime that ruled Athens at the time, a politician named Theramenes gave an impressive speech that seemed to be swaying the jury. In response, the regime had a number of goons openly carrying daggers to stand in front of the assembly, as an intimidation tactic
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Submitted January 18, 2026 at 02:38PM by Nero2t2
via reddit https://ift.tt/bakG1ez
https://ift.tt/Ba9Qe1r
Submitted January 18, 2026 at 02:38PM by Nero2t2
via reddit https://ift.tt/bakG1ez
TIL that the third person to walk on the Moon had dyslexia and was expelled from high school before earning an engineering degree from Princeton.
https://ift.tt/DHGAmCQ
Submitted January 18, 2026 at 04:24PM by GDW312
via reddit https://ift.tt/jLKhPDp
https://ift.tt/DHGAmCQ
Submitted January 18, 2026 at 04:24PM by GDW312
via reddit https://ift.tt/jLKhPDp
TIL that Basque fishermen likely reached the cod-rich waters off Newfoundland BEFORE Columbus, kept the routes secret for economic reasons and only later did explorers like John Cabot (1497) publicly encounter European fishing boats there.
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Submitted January 18, 2026 at 05:16PM by Ancient-Ordinary-460
via reddit https://ift.tt/6umhCIX
https://ift.tt/SFbRYH4
Submitted January 18, 2026 at 05:16PM by Ancient-Ordinary-460
via reddit https://ift.tt/6umhCIX
TIL the public exposure of the penis head was regarded by the Greeks as dishonourable and shameful, something only seen in slaves and barbarians.
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Submitted January 18, 2026 at 04:40PM by gullydon
via reddit https://ift.tt/3HXJwLU
https://ift.tt/SMqLWKj
Submitted January 18, 2026 at 04:40PM by gullydon
via reddit https://ift.tt/3HXJwLU
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TIL bats carry many different kinds of viruses, but usually do not get sick themselves, sometimes leading to zoonotic infections in humans
https://ift.tt/qQyjtAX
Submitted January 18, 2026 at 04:00PM by Forsaken-Peak8496
via reddit https://ift.tt/QMASbcW
https://ift.tt/qQyjtAX
Submitted January 18, 2026 at 04:00PM by Forsaken-Peak8496
via reddit https://ift.tt/QMASbcW
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TIL William Bruce Mumford tore down a U.S. flag in Union-occupied New Orleans (1862), was court-martialed and executed on Gen. Benjamin Butler’s orders, and is considered the last person executed for treason against the United States.
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Submitted January 18, 2026 at 07:01PM by Ziggythesquid
via reddit https://ift.tt/tjlznuD
https://ift.tt/Z6Sahwn
Submitted January 18, 2026 at 07:01PM by Ziggythesquid
via reddit https://ift.tt/tjlznuD
TIL Channel 4 in the UK was set up by the government with a specific, legally mandated remit to cater to minority groups and interests that were not being served by existing broadcasters (BBC and ITV).
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Submitted January 18, 2026 at 07:57PM by upthetruth1
via reddit https://ift.tt/5jxDQMV
https://ift.tt/Ay1kMVq
Submitted January 18, 2026 at 07:57PM by upthetruth1
via reddit https://ift.tt/5jxDQMV
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TIL Kurt Cobain mentioned Freddie Mercury in his suicide note
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Submitted January 18, 2026 at 06:50PM by i_am_loki_ofasgard
via reddit https://ift.tt/UhLT34o
https://ift.tt/xUG5cz6
Submitted January 18, 2026 at 06:50PM by i_am_loki_ofasgard
via reddit https://ift.tt/UhLT34o
TIL that the outbound leg of a trip feels longer than the return because novelty and uncertainty stretch our perception of time, while familiarity on the way back makes it seem shorter — a phenomenon called the return trip effect.
https://ift.tt/lEsKo9H
Submitted January 18, 2026 at 07:32PM by Own-Bullfrog7362
via reddit https://ift.tt/G8YqZ9K
https://ift.tt/lEsKo9H
Submitted January 18, 2026 at 07:32PM by Own-Bullfrog7362
via reddit https://ift.tt/G8YqZ9K
University of Toronto
Time warp: why uncertainty affects how we perceive time
Have you ever wondered why the outbound trip to a new destination feels longer than the return trip home? New U of T research suggests a big reason could be uncertainty over future events. “When people are anticipating uncertain future events, time tends…
TIL that the ancient Semitic people had a deity named El that ruled over a pantheon of gods including Yahweh. The names Elizabeth, Daniel, Gabriel, Samuel, Michael and others originate from this.
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Submitted January 18, 2026 at 08:44PM by Astrolologer
via reddit https://ift.tt/1srTVGi
https://ift.tt/LG2RxFE
Submitted January 18, 2026 at 08:44PM by Astrolologer
via reddit https://ift.tt/1srTVGi
TIL Chick-fil-A receives over 20,000 applicants each year who want to become a franchise owner and only selects between 75-80 of them.
https://ift.tt/WXMYrkm
Submitted January 18, 2026 at 09:58PM by tyrion2024
via reddit https://ift.tt/Z8jFQz9
https://ift.tt/WXMYrkm
Submitted January 18, 2026 at 09:58PM by tyrion2024
via reddit https://ift.tt/Z8jFQz9
Mashed
You'll Probably Never Own A Chick-Fil-A Franchise. Here's Why
You'll probably never own a Chick-fil-A franchise because there are several big hurdles to jump through during the application process.
TIL that in 1992, a British farmer searching for a lost hammer instead discovered the largest hoard of late Roman gold and silver coins ever found in Britain.
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Submitted January 18, 2026 at 09:16PM by SwordfishEither2516
via reddit https://ift.tt/765q3Ot
https://ift.tt/Buhfz75
Submitted January 18, 2026 at 09:16PM by SwordfishEither2516
via reddit https://ift.tt/765q3Ot
TIL a nearly blind cat named Jerry Fox wore custom glasses and saved Brooklyn Borough Hall from a fire in 1904. He was on the city payroll as "Assistant Janitor" and when he died, The New York Times ran his obituary.
https://ift.tt/5RseMKY
Submitted January 18, 2026 at 08:30PM by Danny__NYC
via reddit https://ift.tt/5KV3Ddt
https://ift.tt/5RseMKY
Submitted January 18, 2026 at 08:30PM by Danny__NYC
via reddit https://ift.tt/5KV3Ddt
Cats About Town Tours
Historical walking tours in NYC focused on the cats who built the city.
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TIL about the "Saavedra Position"—a famous chess endgame where an amateur player found a win that professional masters missed. The key is "underpromotion"—turning a pawn into a Rook instead of a Queen. A Queen would force a draw (stalemate), but the weaker Rook wins the game.
https://ift.tt/fazRH8y
Submitted January 18, 2026 at 10:18PM by ralphbernardo
via reddit https://ift.tt/l7QN0hx
https://ift.tt/fazRH8y
Submitted January 18, 2026 at 10:18PM by ralphbernardo
via reddit https://ift.tt/l7QN0hx
TIL that U.S. Vice President William R. King took the oath of office in Cuba in 1853 because he was too ill to travel to Washington, making him the only U.S. president or vice president ever sworn in on foreign soil, and he died less than a month later before ever serving in Washington.
https://ift.tt/fPGrQwN
Submitted January 19, 2026 at 01:39AM by cape2k
via reddit https://ift.tt/2ghkMeB
https://ift.tt/fPGrQwN
Submitted January 19, 2026 at 01:39AM by cape2k
via reddit https://ift.tt/2ghkMeB
TIL No one knew exactly how old Manute Bol was.
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Submitted January 18, 2026 at 11:22PM by TheRealDonahue
via reddit https://ift.tt/kFIYAED
https://ift.tt/OFMPdBz
Submitted January 18, 2026 at 11:22PM by TheRealDonahue
via reddit https://ift.tt/kFIYAED
TIL Scientists at the Parkes radio telescope in Australia spent 17 years trying to identify powerful but extremely short radio bursts that would appear at seemingly random intervals. In 2015 they finally identified the cause: a microwave oven at the facility being opened prematurely.
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Submitted January 19, 2026 at 01:51AM by 749762
via reddit https://ift.tt/E7W0VbO
https://ift.tt/FC1GRjy
Submitted January 19, 2026 at 01:51AM by 749762
via reddit https://ift.tt/E7W0VbO
TIL that during the Fall of Tenochtitlan, the Conquistadors were joined by thousands of native allies who resented the Aztecs
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Submitted January 19, 2026 at 01:51AM by 749762
via reddit https://ift.tt/URDGPKz
https://ift.tt/oqT57xS
Submitted January 19, 2026 at 01:51AM by 749762
via reddit https://ift.tt/URDGPKz
Encyclopedia Britannica
Battle of Tenochtitlán
Battle of Tenochtitlan (May 22–August 13, 1521), military engagement between the Aztecs and a coalition of Spanish and indigenous combatants commanded by Hernan Cortes. Cortes’s army besieged Tenochtitlan for 93 days. Superior weaponry and a devastating smallpox…
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TIL in 1985, as a deliberate snub, the University of Oxford voted to refuse Margaret Thatcher an honorary degree in protest against her cuts in funding for higher education. This award had previously been given to all prime ministers who had been educated at Oxford.
https://ift.tt/oUFP86l).
Submitted January 19, 2026 at 04:09AM by WouldbeWanderer
via reddit https://ift.tt/dzVjGaD
https://ift.tt/oUFP86l).
Submitted January 19, 2026 at 04:09AM by WouldbeWanderer
via reddit https://ift.tt/dzVjGaD
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