TIL that the ß symbol is a ligature composed of an s and a more different s. The secret is that the first s is the long kind that looks like an f. Maybe I'll remember to pronounce it as such in the future.
TIL (well - a few days ago I learned) that there's technically gluten-free matzo, but that there's a debate over whether or not you can actually make matzo that's gluten-free and have it be kosher for Passover. This is because there's, like, five grains that are Passover-kosher and one of them is oats - but the debate is "does that line actually refer to oats, or is it referring to another type of wheat?". As a result, Manichewitz makes gluten-free matzo but they won't label it as kosher for Seder (which is a slightly higher standard than just 'kosher for Passover use'). The box I saw for sale was, in fact, labelled as "gluten-free matzo-like squares", which is impressive hedging on their part.
Bart Simpson was apparently just ahead of his time; while I can't find anything on the etymology of the word, there is a Kwyjibo Mine in Canada.
tumblr puts at least 5 ads on every page according to my adblocker that is i refreshed fialleril's blog and adblocker's little corner icon helpfully has a 5 on it to say it's blocked 5 ads tumblr whyyyyyyyyyyyy
Depending on the ad blocker, there's a good chance it's counting elements blocked, not individual ads.
today i learnt that that 'forum bug' with the sideways pictures affects more than just forums i had to do the rotate resave dance with a passport application photo taken with a camera (as in, not a phone camera or anything, a camera camera)
TIL that despite what Alex, my mom, and I had assumed, the words “Babel” (as in the Tower of Babel) and “babble” are not etymologically related! Babel apparently comes from Akkadian and means “gate of God,” whereas “babble” seems to be derived most directly from German (albeit with linguistic ancestors further back), although similar words with the same meaning are present in many European languages. Clarifying edit: The word “babble,” and all its related terms in other languages, seems to be mostly derived from baby-talk, of all things!
TIL there is a David Weber novel which is pretty standard military SF "aliens invade, discover humans are the most superspecialawesome species in the galaxy with the fastest ability to develop tech, here are ten pages of rambling about gun specs" right up until like ten pages from the end they defeat the aliens because vampires exist and some random secondary character was actually Dracula. And then the book ends.
did he... did he get bored of writing it right at the end or was that planned. because either way the balls of that move are incredible and i am in awe
Actually, if it's the one I was thinking of, I'm pretty sure the humans were getting their asses kicked until dracula shows up.
TIL that that video of a raccoon trying to wash cotton candy and then going ?????? when it magically disappears is a Thing that has been known long enough that a shoujo horror manga from the 90s referenced it.
They like to use our bird bath to dampen their food/paws sometimes. Makes a huge mess, but I guess muddy water is better than unexpected sugar water? The poor birds.
