TIL that FDR founded an organization to find a cure for polio, and believed that if everyone gave only a dime, polio would be eradicated. Because of this motto, after his death in 1945, FDR's face was put on the dime, and his organization was renamed "The March of Dimes." (en.wikipedia.org)
submitted by wut_m8toe
TIL People with poor mathematical skills aren't necessarily bad at math because they are 'ungifted'. There is a phenomena called 'Math Anxiety' that makes people perform worse, which sometimes leads to math avoidance, which leads to lesser knowledge and consequently more Math anxiety. (mathgoodies.com)
submitted by IEatBabies666
TIL The "Harlem Hellfighters" were the first African American regiment in WWI who were assigned to the French forces. None were captured, never lost a trench, or a foot of ground to the enemy. They returned to the U.S. as one of the most successful regiments of World War I (youtube.com)
submitted by PewdiepieIsHitler
TIL that until the late 1960s, men with long hair were prohibited from entering Disneyland because it did not meet the standards of Disney's unwritten dress code. Employees were also prohibited from having any facial hair because visitors would associate it with un-American activities. (snopes.com)
submitted by The42ndTurtle
TIL a NY woman was startled to hear a loud crash in her apartment kitchen followed by the sounds of someone breathing inside her wall. The man inside had climbed into an air vent before falling six stories and getting stuck. He said it was part of the initiation for being new to the building. (atlasobscura.com)
submitted by KermitTheSnail
TIL California's largest body of water, the Salton Sea, was created by an engineering mistake. Irrigation canals were dug from the Colorado river to the Salton sink. When the river flooded a dyke was breached and the entire Colorado river poured into the sink making the sea. (amusingplanet.com)
submitted by wpiman