TIL that Timothy McVeigh, the OKC bomber, ate two Taco Bell tacos after finding out he had been sentenced to death on his way to prison. He scratched off a promo ticket on the side and found out he won free nachos. He gave the ticket to a U.S. Marshal and said “Have some nachos on Timothy McVeigh.”

https://extras.denverpost.com/bomb/bomb040401a.htm
#til #todayilearned
https://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/comments/1vmklqv/til_that_timothy_mcveigh_the_okc_bomber_ate_two/

TIL that in 1833 a Boston ship owned by "Ice King" Frederic Tudor carried pond ice ~16,000 miles to Calcutta; ~80 tons melted but 100 arrived and sold for a fortune.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frederic_Tudor
#til #todayilearned
https://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/comments/1vmka8n/til_that_in_1833_a_boston_ship_owned_by_ice_king/

TIL on July 31, 1976, the night before Colorado’s 100th anniversary, thousands of people celebrating in Big Thompson Canyon had no warning before a 30-foot wall of water swept through the narrow gorge after 7.5 inches of rain fell in a single hour, killing 144 people

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1976_Big_Thompson_River_flood
#til #todayilearned
https://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/comments/1vmk6d6/til_on_july_31_1976_the_night_before_colorados/

TIL someone accidentally recreated someone else's web app with the same name and bugs with LLMs. Realising what happened they now redirect to the original

https://blog.terrygodier.com/2026/08/09/mea-culpa-dark-hours.html
#til #todayilearned
https://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/comments/1vmji67/til_someone_accidentally_recreated_someone_elses/

TIL every year, 22 billion kilometres of toilet paper are used. This is enough to wrap around Earth 50,000 times or cover 30 journeys to the Sun

https://pureplanetclub.com/blogs/club-diaries/what-are-the-facts-effects-of-toilet-papers-on-the-environment
#til #todayilearned
https://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/comments/1vmiy1o/til_every_year_22_billion_kilometres_of_toilet/

TIL The Bayeux Tapestry is believed to have a section missing. A reconstruction of what the missing piece likely showed, the coronation of William as King, was made in 2013.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-guernsey-21390820
#til #todayilearned
https://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/comments/1vmidtw/til_the_bayeux_tapestry_is_believed_to_have_a/

TIL the 1783 Laki eruption in Iceland killed over half the country's livestock and at least one-fifth of its people, then lowered global temperatures enough to cause crop failures across Europe.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laki
#til #todayilearned
https://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/comments/1vmg5el/til_the_1783_laki_eruption_in_iceland_killed_over/

TIL about St. Josaphat, who according to Christian legend was an Indian prince who renounced his throne and led an ascetic life. It wasn't until the 1800s when scholars confirmed that the story of St. Josaphat was in fact the story of Buddha.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barlaam_and_Josaphat
#til #todayilearned
https://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/comments/1vmfbi8/til_about_st_josaphat_who_according_to_christian/

TIL that the Mercury Seven astronauts calculated that one of the seven would die during Project Mercury. Gus Grissom did die as an astronaut, albeit on the ground during Project Apollo.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercury_Seven
#til #todayilearned
https://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/comments/1vmdqvo/til_that_the_mercury_seven_astronauts_calculated/

TIL Karen Carpenter's heart failure was caused in part by abuse of Ipecac

https://english.elpais.com/health/2023-11-17/ipecac-the-plant-that-killed-karen-carpenter-the-star-who-was-consumed-by-anorexia.html
#til #todayilearned
https://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/comments/1vmdodw/til_karen_carpenters_heart_failure_was_caused_in/

TIL of “devotio,” an ancient Roman ritual in which a general vowed to sacrifice his own life in battle—along with the enemy army—to the gods of the underworld in exchange for victory. Livy preserves the prayer of the consul Decius Mus, who devoted the enemy’s legions “along with myself.”

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Devotio
#til #todayilearned
https://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/comments/1vmdbbc/til_of_devotio_an_ancient_roman_ritual_in_which_a/

TIL that the iconic, cinematic "Roundball Rock" theme song for The NBA on NBC was composed by John Tesh after he woke up in the middle of the night in a French hotel room in 1989 and had to hum the entire melody into his home answering machine so he wouldn't forget it

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roundball_Rock
#til #todayilearned
https://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/comments/1vmd1sk/til_that_the_iconic_cinematic_roundball_rock/