Today I Learned
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- TIL norway has a homocide map with exact locations of murders.
The map contains exact locations of homocides from the 2000s to now. You can zoom in far enough to see the neighborhood the murder(s) happened in. I'm sorry that the site is primarily in Norwegian, but you should still be able to zoom around. Wonder of there's a global map that's that detailed.
- TIL Hunter S. Thomson got an early honorable discharge from the air force in part because, "Sometimes his rebel and superior attitude seems to rub off on other airmen staff members."
From Wikipedia: In 1958, while he was an airman first class, his commanding officer recommended him for an early honorable discharge. "In summary, this airman, although talented, will not be guided by policy," chief of information services Colonel William S. Evans wrote to the Eglin personnel office. "Sometimes his rebel and superior attitude seems to rub off on other airmen staff members."
- TIL India had a tradition in the 1970s of making military helicopters look like animalswww.peepultree.world Is It a Bird, Is It a Plane? It’s a ‘Flying Elephant’!
Here’s something we bet you didn’t think was possible – an elephant that could fly and dance in the sky. In the 1970s, the Indian Air Force discovered a creative way to showcase its Chetak helicopter. See for yourself.
- What Do Neural Networks Really Learn? Exploring the Brain of an AI Model
Neural networks have become increasingly impressive in recent years, but there's a big catch: we don't really know what they are doing. We give them data and ways to get feedback, and somehow, they learn all kinds of tasks. It would be really useful, especially for safety purposes, to understand what they have learned and how they work after they've been trained. The ultimate goal is not only to understand in broad strokes what they're doing but to precisely reverse engineer the algorithms encoded in their parameters. This is the ambitious goal of mechanistic interpretability. As an introduction to this field, we show how researchers have been able to partly reverse-engineer how InceptionV1, a convolutional neural network, recognizes images.
- TIL the very first animated feature film was "Creation" by Pinto Colvig, made in 1916. It has been lost and only a few frames remain, but Colvig went on to be the voice of Goofy and the original Bozo.blueprintdigital.com The Curious History of Video Animation | Blueprint
The videos watched every day were not always as sophisticated as they are now. Read more about the early days of video production and how video has evolved.
- TIL the first Star Wars movie (A New Hope) was actually made after a book adaptation, which means Star Wars hype is technically literary-based in naturestarwars.fandom.com Star Wars: A New Hope (novelization)
Star Wars: A New Hope, formerly titled Star Wars: From the Adventures of Luke Skywalker, is a Legends novel ghostwritten by Alan Dean Foster and credited to George Lucas. It adapts the film of the same name, and it was based on the screenplay by Lucas. The novelization was first published on Novembe...
- Bye Bye Paywall - A Simple Way to Remove Paywalls from Online News
https://byebyepaywall.com/en/
This tool allows you to view URLs behind the paywall and open them in various archive and paywall bypass services. Just enter a URL in the field above and click on the desired service!
The linked tools allow you to view content that is hidden behind paywalls by showing a cached version of the page. It is important to note that we do not offer an illegal service and that the responsibility for using these services lies with the user. This way you bypass some paywalls that are present on sites that have poor paywall protection integrated.
- TIL: About Foxfire a Bioluminescent Fungus
I first heard about it as being used to mark gauges on a 1770s submersible so the operator could read them in the dark.
Unfortunately the wiki isn't built out much.
- Today I learned you can run doom from motherboard BIOS.www.pcgamer.com You can now run Doom entirely within a motherboard BIOS
PC boot. PC play Doom. Reset. Repeat.
Idk how many other games you can do this with but I thought it was interesting.
- TIL that in 2014, a photographer tried to copyright a monkey's selfie and sue Wikipedia for it.
The EFF soon created a crossword, overlaid it on top of the monkey, and featured it on their website.
> > > August 2014 – Photographer David Slater sent a copyright takedown notice to the Wikimedia Commons over a photograph of a Celebes crested macaque taken on one of his cameras, which at the time was being operated by the macaque, resulting in a "monkey selfie". The Wikimedia Foundation dismissed the claims, asserting that the photograph, having been taken by a non-human animal, rather than Slater, is in the public domain per United States law.[277][278] Subsequently, a court in San Francisco ruled copyright protection could not be applied to the monkey and a University of Michigan law professor said "the original monkey selfie is in the public domain."[279] > >
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monkey\_selfie\_copyright\_dispute :
> > > In September 2015, PETA filed a lawsuit against Slater and Blurb, requesting that the copyright be assigned to the macaque and that PETA be appointed to administer proceeds from the photos for the endangered species' benefit.[6] In dismissing PETA's case, a federal district court ruled that a monkey cannot own copyright under US law.[7] PETA appealed. > >
> > > In May 2018, Condé Nast Entertainment acquired the rights from Slater to make a documentary film related to the monkey selfie dispute. The project was being overseen by Dawn Ostroff and Jeremy Steckler.[55] > >
- A WWII Propaganda Campaign Popularized the Myth That Carrots Help You See in the Darkwww.smithsonianmag.com A WWII Propaganda Campaign Popularized the Myth That Carrots Help You See in the Dark
How a ruse to keep German pilots confused gave the Vitamin-A-rich vegetable too much credit
- TIL Catwoman canonically has a sidekickbatman.fandom.com Kitrina Falcone
Kitrina Falcone or Catgirl, previously known as Kittyhawk, is the niece of Mario Falcone. Mario abused Kitrina mentally and physically due to her uniqueness. She became Catwoman's sidekick, after befriending Selina Kyle. The first Cat Girl was on the original 60s Batman TV show, years before Batman ...
- TIL in the Carboniferous Period, no fungus existed to decompose trees. They just grew on top of each other up and up.
The weight of the trees was so great that the ones on the bottom got squished and became coal. That’s where coal is from. Bonus fact: the whole time this was happening, sharks were hunting in the oceans. Sharks are older than trees and fungus!
- TIL: Some cephalopods can fly…
> Some cephalopods are able to fly through the air for distances of up to 50 metres (160 ft). While cephalopods are not particularly aerodynamic, they achieve these impressive ranges by jet-propulsion; water continues to be expelled from the funnel while the organism is in the air. The animals spread their fins and tentacles to form wings and actively control lift force with body posture. One species, Todarodes pacificus, has been observed spreading tentacles in a flat fan shape with a mucus film between the individual tentacles, while another, Sepioteuthis sepioidea, has been observed putting the tentacles in a circular arrangement.
- TIL Shrek is based on a very weird bookwww.polygon.com What happened to Shrek’s laser-eyes?
The original Shrek is weird, random — and typical for its author
Didn't even knew there was a shrek book, much less that he had laser-eyes. wtf the book looks better than the movie
"Original Shrek smells so bad that trees lean away from him as he goes by, and he’s so ugly that he can cook food just by glaring at it, with an eye-laser effect that looks exactly like a colored-pencil version of Superman’s heat vision. Shrek also breathes fire and blows smoke out of his ears for fun."
- TIL Making a living writing books is more or less as rare as becoming a billionairewww.theintrinsicperspective.com Making a living by writing is as rare as being a billionaire
Cultural billionaires vs. actual billionaires
- TIL Key West had an incredibly corrupt fire chief in the 70s. His name was "Bum" Farto, and not for the reason you would expect.www.mentalfloss.com The Legend of 'Bum' Farto, the Missing Key West Fire Chief Turned Drug Dealer
In 1975, Bum Farto had it all. A dead body and a drug deal gone wrong changed everything.
- TIL the US government once banned sliced breadwww.mentalfloss.com The Time the U.S. Government Banned Sliced Bread
During World War II, even America's
- TIL about Thomas Midgley and I wonder what's 'perfectly safe' today.www.cnn.com Once celebrated, an inventor’s breakthroughs are now viewed as disasters — and the world is still recovering | CNN
Though the dangers of leaded gasoline and CFCs are now well-known, their inventor, Thomas Midgley Jr. — the subject of a film under development — was once lauded as a hero. But even he couldn’t escape the impact of his creations.
- TIL of research into genetically engineering humans for space and living on other planets.www.space.com Can We Genetically Engineer Humans to Survive Missions to Mars?
We might one day combine tardigrade DNA into our own cells.
One method is epigenome engineering and would target genes advantageous for space. Another method is to combine the DNA of other species (i.e. tardigrades) with human cells to make humans better fit for space.
From lemmit.online
- TIL Pat Morita (Mr. Miyagi) started out doing stand-up and was mentored by Redd Foxx. Here he is doing stand-up on The Redd Foxx show in 1977.
He also does a great Redd Foxx impersionation- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=490TsUYe5f4
- TIL catnip is safe and healthy for dogs and can act as a mild sedativewww.rover.com Is Catnip Safe for Dogs?
If your house is home to a cat and a dog, you may be wondering, is my cat's catnip safe for dogs? We've rounded up the facts for you here.
>Is Catnip Safe for Dogs? > >Yes! Not only is catnip safe for dogs, it is also good for them! Catnip contains vitamins C and E, magnesium, flavonoids (phytonutrients), tannins, and essential oils. Like cats, some dogs don’t respond to catnip but for the ones who do, catnip has the opposite effect that it has with cats. With dogs, catnip acts as a mild sedative and can help with a variety of issues. > >Nerves: If your pooch gets nervous at the vet or groomer, try giving her some catnip about 30 minutes before her appointment (see below for tips on how to do this). “It calms them down,” holistic veterinarian Dr. Randy Kidd, tells Animal Wellness magazine. “Some dogs don’t respond, but the ones that do become more relaxed, calmer.” > >Bad Belly: Catnip can also come to the rescue of pooches suffering from tummy troubles. These include everything from indigestion (sort of like how mint tea is good for the human belly) to nausea and motion sickness. > >Sleep: Because it acts as a sedative, catnip can help with sleep. If you have a pooch who keeps you up at night, catnip given before bedtime for a short period of time could help to regulate his sleep patterns, getting him to a place where everyone can sleep the whole night through.
- TIL one of the oldest TV shows was simply called "Sea Stories" on the BBC, featuring Royal Navy Commander A.B. Campbell describing the personalities and places he had seen. No known footage exists.
aired from 1936-1937. if anyone has a copy pls lemme know
- TIL that there are two types of earwax: wet and drywww.self.com Kind of Gross, but Did You Know There Are Actually 2 Types of Earwax?
Wait until you hear this.
> the type of earwax you have comes down in part to your skin type, Dr. Shapiro explains. People with oilier skin may have wet earwax, while those with drier skin tend to have dry earwax, she says.
> People of East Asian descent are more likely to have dry earwax, while wet earwax seems to be more common with everyone else
- TIL that some people do not have an inner voice and think in different nonverbal ways.humanities.ku.dk People without an inner voice have poorer verbal memory
The vast majority of people have an ongoing conversation with themselves, an inner voice, that plays an important role in their daily lives. But between 5-10 per cent of the population do not have the same experience of an inner voice, and they find it more difficult to perform certain verbal memory...
cross-posted from: https://lemmit.online/post/2916897
> ##### This is an automated archive made by the Lemmit Bot. > The original was posted on /r/science by /u/mvea on 2024-05-15 10:17:06+00:00.
- TIL China now has a 3 child policy.
Maximum, that is.
1 child policy from 1979 to 2015.
2 child policy from 2015 to 2021.
3 child policy since 2021.
>The announcement came after the release of the results of the Seventh National Population Census, which showed that the number of births in mainland China in 2020 was only 12 million, the lowest number of births since 1960, and the further aging of the population, against which the policy was born.[5] This was the slowest population growth rate China experienced.[6]
>Although the CCP government had high expectations for the new policy,[16] in a 2021 online poll conducted by the state media Xinhua on its Weibo account, using the hashtag #AreYouReady for the new three-child policy, about 29,000 out of 31,000 respondents stated they would "never consider it."[15]
- TIL the origin of the word 'dog' is an etymological mystery. (The same is true about the word 'squid' but obviously I already knew that.)www.dictionary.com Why Is “Dog” One Of The Great Mysteries Of The English Language?
A dog by any other name would still be man's best friend ... but we want to know where the word "dog" came from in the first place. Who knows?
See also: https://www.etymonline.com/word/squid
- TIL Many bronze age peoples forgot what stone age tools were, and thought discovered ones as some kind of mystical talismans or signs from a thunder godwww.theguardian.com When stone tools were considered lightning remnants – and weapons of the gods
Neolithic stone axes were known as thunderstones and thought to have magical powers
Also mistaken for fulgurite by the more naturalistically minded, apparently. Maybe most common in the Nordics, based on viking references?
Additional links: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/article/100810-thor-thors-hammer-viking-graves-thunderstones-science https://fi.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ukonvaaja [Finnish]
- TIL Earthworms aren't native to the northern United States; they are a recent invasive species which does significant damage to boreal forestswww.outdoorlife.com Earthworms Aren't Native to Most of North America, and Now They're Threatening Boreal Forests
What could be more innocuous than an earthworm? Plenty. Non-native earthworms are damaging healthy soil, native plants, and carbon storage.
- TIL the American Conservapedia, among other atrocities, redirects Linux to GNU/Linux
I guess they have a quantum taste for GNU!
- TIL 40 states in the US charge you $20-$80 a day for being incarcerated in prison.
Very weird that I am so old and have literally never heard this mentioned in a TV show or book or movie or anything.
In four out of five states, if you go to prison, you are literally paying for the time you spend there.
As you can guess, this results in crippling debt as soon as you're released.
The county gets back a fraction of what they hold over your head the rest of your life until you commit suicide(or die naturally and peacefully with the sword of damocles hanging over your head).
$20-$80 a day according to Rutgers.
Counties apparently sue people and employ wage garnishment to get back the money that majority of people obviously cannot pay back.
https://www.rutgers.edu/news/states-unfairly-burdening-incarcerated-people-pay-stay-fees
- TIL if The Bare Naked Ladies had $1m when the song was recorded, and parked it in S&P500, they'd be rich.
While $1m USD in 1988 is worth only $2.6m in 2024, if they just put it in the S&P 500 back then and left it there, it'd be worth over $44.6m today.
I don't know if the Dijon ketchup is really worth it.
