52 Things I Learned: 2024

Back in December of 2023, I was inspired by Jason Kottke and Tom Whitwell’s when they published new things they learned throughout the year.

In that spirit, let's give this a roll - I kept track of at least one new TIL, or 'thing I learned' each week over 2024.

Please enjoy this year's mega-post for your next trivia night:

1. Soup is a leading cause of burn-related visits to the hospital among young children in the United States. - Pediatricians See an Alarming Number of Noodle-Soup Burns
2. Barbara Eden spoke Farsi, learned from a UCLA professor, in the pilot of I Dream of Jeannie before her character magically switched to English. - Barbara Eden spoke Farsi in the pilot episode of 'I Dream of Jeannie'
3. Cinnamon may have health benefits to offer our brain, precisely when it comes to Alzheimer's prevention. - Eating Cinnamon Has An Unexpected Effect On Your Brain Health
4. There's a huge family drama behind M&Ms. Due to a bad relationship with his father, the son of Forrest Mars Sr didn't want to share the idea with him. Instead, he turned to US rival Hershey's - and asked if they would collaborate with him. - People are only just realising what M&Ms stands for - and huge family row behind it.
5. "Buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo" is a grammatically correct sentence. - Buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo
6. Someone finally beat Tetris. - The Tetris Killscreen
7. Commander David Scott proved Galileo was right by simultaneously dropping a hammer and a feather on the moon, where there isn't a vacuum. Since there was no air resistance, both objects released fell at the same rate regardless of mass. - The Apollo 15 Hammer-Feather Drop
8. The first popsicle was accidentally invented by 11-year-old Frank Epperson in 1905. He accidentally left a container of powdered soda and water on his porch overnight with a stir stick inside. - The Popsicle Story
9. The town of Ptarmigan found its name too tricky to spell, so why not rename the town 'Chicken.' - How did the tiny Alaska village of Chicken get its name?
10. TIL why snakes have forked tongues. - Smelling in stereo – the real reason snakes have flicking, forked tongues
11. Researchers have uncovered that putting duct tape on the "hatch" was a precaution against accidental openings, but its true story may be more grim. - What happens when an astronaut in orbit says he's not coming back?
12. I just learned that Judy Garland's slippers from The Wizard of Oz were stolen. - Reformed mobster went after 'one last score' when he stole Judy Garland's ruby slippers from 'Oz'
13. Ever wonder why you have the best ideas in the shower? Now, science tells you why. - The science of why you have great ideas in the shower
14. TIL the history of the famous Oscar Mayer jingle. - My Bologna Has a First Name
15. Something that I didn't know - The Michelin Man originates from Bibendum (named for the Latin'Nunc est bibendum'), which comes from poems by the Roman poet Horace, and which means 'Now is the time to drink.' And it gets better: Bibendum is a stone-cold killer who slaughtered his rivals, smoked heavily, and attracted violence and controversy wherever he went. - The Dark and Violent History of the Michelin Man
16. More than you ever wanted to know about the history of pasta. - The Surprising Origins of 15 Pasta Shapes.
17. Abandoned America always haunts me with its incredible photography of random places. This forgotten amusement park is particularly creepy. - Six Flags New Orleans
18. Uh -- what? Whales used to walk at one time? - When Whales Could Walk... Excuse Me?
19. Not something I ever considered before... - Does Mario feel pain?
20. I had never heard of this crazy story about John R. Brinkley's 'One Million Watt "border blaster" radio station,' nor did I know the station's impact on broadcasting history and the ties to medical practices and operations. - XER - The King Of The Border Blasters
21. Uncrustables are forecasted to be a $1b (yes, billion) business by 2026. - Have you seen the crust?
22. Missionaries have no direct involvement in this wild origin story. - The Research Error That Gave Us the Phrase' Missionary Position'
23. In 2003, there was a boycott of Coca-Cola products, alleging that the company's locally owned bottlers in Colombia used illegal paramilitary groups to intimidate, threaten and kill its workers. - Coca-Cola boycott launched after killings at Colombian plants
24. From Dickshooter, Idaho, to Hell, Michigan, here are some of the wackiest names of towns in the US. - The Funniest Town Name in All 50 States
25. Both are members of the camel family, but alpacas and llamas aren't even the same species. - Alpacas vs. Llamas: What's the Difference?
26. Speaking of whales, orcas are creatures of habit. And for one summer only, they decided to wear dead fish on their heads like hats. (Update: they started doing it again this year!) - In 1987, Orcas Had A Fashion Of Wearing A Dead Salmon As A Hat
27. You will never guess where Caesar salad comes from... - Hail, Caesar! At 100 years old, the world's best salad is having a renaissance
28. It makes sense that cigars used to be the prize at carnival games. - The Fascinating History of 'Close, But No Cigar'
29. Just in case you were curious.. - Why Do Dogs Lift Their Leg to Pee?
30. The term "boneless" describes a cooking style and does not guarantee the absence of bones. Restaurant not liable for injury from bone in 'boneless' wings
31. Mantis shrimp use their appendages, called dactyl clubs, for smashing and battering. These clubs can accelerate at 50 miles per hour and hit with 160 pounds of force, capable of breaking glass. Smaller sea creatures avoid them due to this impressive power. - How Do Mantis Shrimp Break Glass?
32. Gilligan's Island only ran for three seasons! What COULD have happened, what WOULD have happened?
33. Four-fingered cartoon characters started in the 1920s with Disney and early animation studios; apparently, it was better for time and cost to limit the labor on them. Characters with three fingers are often depicted as mutants or aliens. - Why Do So Many Cartoon Characters Have Four Fingers?
34. Henry Phillips reimagined fasteners in the 1930s with a head screw that allowed for self-centering. Here's the origin story. - Why Is It Called a "Phillips Head" Screwdriver?
35. 83% of Americans think movie theater popcorn tastes better. Why is that? It has a seasoning called Flavacol, which contains artificial flavoring and yellow dyes. Yum. - Why Movie Theater Popcorn Tastes So Good
36. Using radio waves for heating things dates back to the 1940s, and the first consumer microwave (Tappan RL-1) was released in 1955 for $1,295 (approximately $15,000 today). - A History of Microwave Ovens
37. Eww. A meeting of nobles with King Henry in Thuringia ended in disaster when the floor collapsed, plunging many into a sewage cesspit. At least 60 nobles drowned in liquid excrement, though some estimates suggest a higher number. - The Erfurt Latrine Disaster
38. Most of today's Halloween costumes come from various cultural influences over time, but they probably aren't what you'd expect. - The Surprising History Behind 5 Popular Halloween Costumes
39. Listeners often believe that songs often contain hidden messages (and Taylor Swift is a master of easter eggs), this is a fun look at mysterious lyrics in Beatles songs. - My Search for Hidden Meanings in Beatles Songs
40. 'The persons and events in this motion picture are fictitious. Any similarity to actual persons or events is unintentional.' That legal boilerplate has been present for almost 100 years because of Rasputin. - Any similarity to actual persons living or dead is purely coincidental
41. Pecan pie became the Thanksgiving favorite in the 1930s after the makers of Karo corn syrup announced a new recipe that used the syrup (originally an anti-depression elixir) that the wife of a company salesman invented. It became so popular that they started selling Karo cookbooks. - From The Sweet Past To The Delicious Present
42. Developed in the 1980s, Honeycrisp apples have experienced a decline in quality over the years. Why? - How Honeycrisp Apples Went From Marvel to Mediocre
43. JFK had a fascination with spy stories, especially James Bond. Recently, it was revealed that he and Jackie Kennedy created a home movie that humorously played off JFK's assassination two months before the real one. - Why JFK Staged His Murder in a James Bond–Inspired Spy Film—2 Months Before His Assassination
44. Have you seen photos of those super creepy time-out dolls (they look like 3-foot-tall kids in a punished pose) from the 1950s? Here's their origin story - Creepy time-out dolls.
45. The board game industry will become a $27 billion market by 2029. What's led to its rise? - Game on! A look into the rise of design-led board games
46. I always love a good map; here's one showing the spread of The Black Death in Europe. - Map Showing The Spread of The Black Death in Europe Between 1346 & 1353
47. Wyoming is notable for having only two escalators located in Casper at Hilltop National Bank and First Interstate Bank. - Why There Are Only Two Escalators In All Of Wyoming
48. Ever wonder how the Sun ultimately ends all life on Earth? Well, here you go. - Here's how the Sun will end all life on Earth
49. Food crime, including theft, smuggling, and counterfeiting, costs the global food industry between $30 to $50 billion annually, with luxury cheese becoming the largest target.- Why luxury cheese is being targeted by black market criminals
50. Did you know you can buy a real set of 50 human molars for only $225? The perfect stocking stuffer. - A Set Of 50 Real Human Molars
51. On any given Friday night in college, there was a good chance I would find myself at Tower Records, buying a CD I would regret in the morning. I had no idea that 'drunk shopping' could be as high as a $45bn/year industry (from 2019). - The 2019 Drunk Shopping Census
52. Xerox scanners used to have a bug that would silently replace numbers in the text of documents to make them compress better. - Filtered for machine misunderstandings.

Coming in the next two weeks - the annual "things I like" mega-post.

Amor Fati ✌🏻