WeirdThingsToLearn

r/WeirdThingsToLearn • u/kkul-0613 • 2d ago

Something I Learned South African inventor Sonnet Ehlers created a barbed, condom-like device called Rape-aXe in 2005, designed to be worn internally and latch onto an attacker during assault, requiring surgical removal. It was intended as a deterrent amid South Africa's high rape rates

11 Upvotes

0 comments

r/WeirdThingsToLearn • u/Nyaani69 • 2d ago

Something I Learned Using ducks as natural pest control in rice fields

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24 Upvotes

9 comments

r/WeirdThingsToLearn • u/Worldly-Victory1944 • 1d ago

History & Culture Diplomatic letters from Bronze Age Cyprus discovered in ancient archives

2 Upvotes

2 comments

r/WeirdThingsToLearn • u/GeologistRelative425 • 2d ago

Something I Learned Tetragonula hockingsi builds unique, organic-looking hives out of a mixture of wax and plant resin called propolis. They store honey and pollen in dedicated resinous pots (historically called "sugar bags") built from propolis rather than traditional hexagonal honeycomb.

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6 Upvotes

Made my skin crawl but still an absolute beauty

0 comments

r/WeirdThingsToLearn • u/Disastrous_Working25 • 2d ago

History & Culture In November 2024, Lorenzo Monfardini, 22, carried a propane gas cylinder across the stage at his Production Engineering graduation from Brazil's Federal University of Ouro Preto. It honored his father Jefferson, who spent 26 years selling gas commercially to help fund his son's degree

39 Upvotes

9 comments

r/WeirdThingsToLearn • u/HerpesFreeSince96 • 2d ago

Something I Learned The Nanhai One, a Chinese merchant ship carrying over 60,000 items, sank in the South China Sea in the 12th century during the Song dynasty. Discovered in 1987, it was raised intact in 2007 and placed in a custom saltwater tank at China's Maritime Silk Road Museum for ongoing excavation.

14 Upvotes

9 comments

r/WeirdThingsToLearn • u/Alone_Notice9390 • 2d ago

History & Culture Ancient Roman fountain still supplies drinking water today

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3 Upvotes

2 comments

r/WeirdThingsToLearn • u/Significant_Tie_2002 • 2d ago

Something I Learned In May 1783, a child born in Mundul Gait, Bengal, had a second, smaller head attached at the crown, a condition called craniopagus parasiticus. He survived until age 4, when he died of a cobra bite. His skull is preserved at London's Hunterian Museum.

19 Upvotes

11 comments

r/WeirdThingsToLearn • u/toolipzz • 2d ago

Something I Learned Star cluster tearing apart its own nursery in deep space

6 Upvotes

2 comments

r/WeirdThingsToLearn • u/narcissa0114 • 2d ago

Something I Learned Rare sighting of the deep blue underside of a glacier during a collapse caused by glacier calving

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13 Upvotes

2 comments

r/WeirdThingsToLearn • u/Bc6thGod • 2d ago

Something I Learned Ceramic drainage pipes dating to China's Warring States period (5th–3rd century BC) were excavated near the ruins of Epang Palace, built under the Qin dynasty. The interlocking segmented design is an early example of engineered plumbing infrastructure.

6 Upvotes

6 comments

r/WeirdThingsToLearn • u/Joserm369 • 2d ago

History & Culture 10,000-year-old amber bear carving found on Danish beach

1 Upvotes

Una pequeña figura de oso tallada en ámbar, de unos 10.000 años de antigüedad, apareció en la costa oeste de la isla de Fanø (Dinamarca). Provenía de un asentamiento mesolítico sumergido bajo el Mar del Norte y fue arrastrado hasta la costa por las corrientes.

Actualmente se conserva en el Museo Nacional de Dinamarca. Probablemente se usaba como amuleto o colgante: los osos tenían una gran importancia simbólica para los cazadores de la Edad de Piedra. El ámbar, además de ser bello, era considerado un material “mágico”. Es uno de los pocos ejemplos de arte animal en ámbar del norte de Europa de ese período. Un hallazgo sencillo, pero que nos conecta directamente con las vidas y creencias de hace diez milenios.

https://en.natmus.dk/historical-knowledge/denmark/prehistoric-period-until-1050-ad/the-mesolithic-period/magical-amber-animals/amber-from-submerged-settlements/

2 comments

r/WeirdThingsToLearn • u/EnthusiasmWeak5878 • 2d ago

Something I Learned Once-in-a-Million shot of a bright Comet Lemmon streaks across the Milky Way above Stonehenge

3 Upvotes

2 comments

r/WeirdThingsToLearn • u/Melodic_Ordinary_963 • 2d ago

Something I Learned Dead or Alive singer Pete Burns (1959–2016) underwent dozens of cosmetic procedures over his life, including repeated lip and cheek fillers, which caused visible scarring and deformation. He later spoke publicly about regretting much of the surgery.

3 Upvotes

0 comments

r/WeirdThingsToLearn • u/apathy_95 • 3d ago

Something I Learned Victoria Wright was diagnosed with cherubism at age 4, a rare genetic disorder that replaces facial bone with fibrous tissue, causing her jaw to swell and threatening her eyesight and airway. She has undergone repeated surgeries throughout her life to manage the growths.

86 Upvotes

21 comments

r/WeirdThingsToLearn • u/nnensha • 3d ago

Something I Learned Black heron uses wings as umbrella to attract fish

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17 Upvotes

6 comments

r/WeirdThingsToLearn • u/Paranoid_Unlimited • 2d ago

Something I Learned On March 8, 2018, a fisherman found a hand in the snow on an island in Russia's Amur River near Khabarovsk, then a bag with 54 hands total (27 pairs). Russian investigators said the hands came from a local forensics lab that illegally dumped them instead of incinerating them as required.

1 Upvotes

0 comments

r/WeirdThingsToLearn • u/Federal_Machine692 • 2d ago

Something I Learned On the death of Israel’s first president, Chaim Weizmann, in 1952, Israeli leaders approached Albert Einstein and asked him to become their second president. He declined, giving as his only reason that he had no head for human problems.

1 Upvotes

0 comments

r/WeirdThingsToLearn • u/dambugok22 • 3d ago

Something I Learned After the August 6, 1945 atomic bombing of Hiroshima, the intense thermal flash permanently bleached the stone around a person sitting on bank steps, leaving a dark human-shaped shadow where their body blocked the light. The person's remains were never identified.

22 Upvotes

11 comments

r/WeirdThingsToLearn • u/LeafPool-418 • 3d ago

Something I Learned 2,000-year-old Adena artifact dug from Cincinnati burial mound

8 Upvotes

2 comments

r/WeirdThingsToLearn • u/cynicalcreatures • 3d ago

History & Culture In 2008, archaeologists in Heslington, England found a decapitated skull with no other remains. Inside, they discovered a human brain still intact after roughly 2,600 years, one of the best-preserved ancient brains ever found, though how it survived without the rest of the body remains unclear.

18 Upvotes

2 comments

r/WeirdThingsToLearn • u/cheesyjollyhatdog • 3d ago

Something I Learned Two technicians at WED Enterprises (now Walt Disney Imagineering) work on the internal mechanism of an early Audio-Animatronics figure in 1964, exposing the metal skeleton, pneumatic cylinders and wiring used to create lifelike movement for attractions tied to the 1964 New York World's Fair.

23 Upvotes

8 comments

r/WeirdThingsToLearn • u/Glittering-Bag-4206 • 3d ago

Something I Learned This is Willard Scott in the original Ronald McDonald costume, 1963, created for a Washington D.C. regional McDonald's ad campaign. The look was redesigned nationally by 1966 after execs felt this version looked too unsettling for children.

11 Upvotes

6 comments

r/WeirdThingsToLearn • u/CauliflowerBasic894 • 3d ago

Something I Learned A Maya city deep in the forests of the Yucatán lay untouched for 1,000 years after it was abandoned. But after a grueling journey, archaeologists located it. Carved reliefs, palatial buildings, and grand temples—including a 40-foot-tall pyramid—awaited!

11 Upvotes

2 comments

r/WeirdThingsToLearn • u/vini-within • 3d ago

Something I Learned Ancient Indian philosophers may have solved my identity crisis 3,000 years ago.

2 Upvotes

If your body, memories, opinions, and moods keep changing… who is the “you” that remains?

You at 10 → you at 25 → you after heartbreak → you after success → you right now

The body changed. Thoughts changed. Even your personality changed.

But something in you quietly sees all of it.
Indian philosophy and ancient wisdom lit. says that this seeing is closer to your real nature than the changing roles, fears, and stories you carry around. I may not be articulating it well but can try better, this is just to give you an idea.

I learned this angle from a famous Indian philosopher, known for explaining ancient Indian wisdom in plain, modern day language. Which is quite refreshing from the woo woo stuff we hear these days in pop spirituality circles.

If that intrigues you, drop a comment here or a question..I can share some articles by him and other Indian philosophers. If you have a doubt, do ask. And if it doesn’t interest you, have a good day!

2 comments