TIL half-used hotel soap is sterilized, melted down, and reformed and sent to poorer countries with scarce hygiene resources

http://heelsfirsttravel.boardingarea.com/2013/08/11/what-does-happen-to-half-used-hotel-soap-and-shampoo/



Submitted April 20, 2015 at 03:56AM by Jeanne23x http://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/comments/336509/til_halfused_hotel_soap_is_sterilized_melted_down/

TIL Grand Central Station in NYC is radioactive due to the natural radioactive elements found in the granite used in its construction. If Grand Central Station were a nuclear power plant, it would be shut down for exceeding the maximum allowable annual dose of radiation for employees.

http://io9.com/grand-central-station-is-radioactive-1689028425



Submitted April 20, 2015 at 02:01AM by DEDson http://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/comments/335rmv/til_grand_central_station_in_nyc_is_radioactive/

TIL that MIT and CalTech maintain a "bitter" rivalry despite being 3,000 miles apart. Unlike most rivalries, it's based largely on pranks--including the theft and transport of an antique cannon from one campus to the other, and the appearance of a "TARDIS" on top of a student hall.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caltech%E2%80%93MIT_rivalry



Submitted April 19, 2015 at 06:02PM by Sanhael http://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/comments/334cyl/til_that_mit_and_caltech_maintain_a_bitter/

TIL that Alice Walton, heir to the Wal-Mart fortune and one of the richest people in the world, has had a history of reckless collisions. Her latest DWI arrest was expunged after the Texas trooper who arrested her was mysteriously suspended, and the statute of limitations was allowed to expire.

http://www.overtravel.net/the-untold-story-of-alice-waltons-dwi-incident/



Submitted April 20, 2015 at 01:42AM by mastercookie123 http://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/comments/335paf/til_that_alice_walton_heir_to_the_walmart_fortune/

TIL a tomato plant was found on the 40 year old volcanic island, Surtsey. Scientists were boggled as to how it got there. Turns out, it was from a scientist taking a dump, subsequently growing the plant.

http://icelandreview.com/news/2015/02/12/dirty-secret-uncovered-doing-business-surtsey



Submitted April 19, 2015 at 11:56PM by Tru_Fakt http://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/comments/335cjn/til_a_tomato_plant_was_found_on_the_40_year_old/

TIL Mr. Rogers' mother knitted every sweater he wore on the show.

http://www.fredrogers.org/frc/news/mister-rogers-shares-how-his-mother-showed-love



Submitted April 19, 2015 at 07:17PM by pyperproblems http://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/comments/334ijb/til_mr_rogers_mother_knitted_every_sweater_he/

TIL when Scottish psychiatrist R.D. Laing faced a naked schizophrenic woman rocking silently to and fro in a padded cell, he took off his own clothes and sat next to her, rocking to the same rhythm until she spoke for the first time in months.

http://www.theguardian.com/books/2008/jun/01/mentalhealth.society/



Submitted April 19, 2015 at 10:03PM by garglemymarbles http://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/comments/334zhs/til_when_scottish_psychiatrist_rd_laing_faced_a/

TIL in 2005 the family of a missing farmer confessed to having killed the man, hacked the body into pieces and fed those to the family's animals. Four years later, his body was found intact in a river behind the wheels of his car.

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2010/oct/20/rudolf-rupp-farmer-family-trial



Submitted April 19, 2015 at 06:26PM by Weepkay http://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/comments/334eoe/til_in_2005_the_family_of_a_missing_farmer/

TIL Walt Disney often acted out all the characters and stories at production meetings and "was just as great as Chaplin". His staff often thought that Disney could have been a great actor or comedian

https://books.google.ca/books?id=I6q6PinOBcQC&printsec=frontcover&dq=walt+disney+watts&hl=en&sa=X&ei=K00zVdikLYrzoATvnYDQDg&ved=0CCUQ6AEwAA#v=snippet&q=great%20actor&f=false



Submitted April 19, 2015 at 12:12PM by veryawesomeguy http://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/comments/333thn/til_walt_disney_often_acted_out_all_the/

TIL Hitler whistled Disney's "When You Wish Upon A Star" while overlooking the recently conquered city of Paris.

http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=wKODfrwlc0gC&pg=PA347&dq=hitler+whistling+disney&hl=en&sa=X&ei=i2lqUqfHG4mjhgf6xoHoAw&ved=0CDcQ6AEwAQ#v=onepage&q=hitler%20whistling%20disney&f=false



Submitted April 19, 2015 at 02:23PM by politicaldan http://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/comments/3340s9/til_hitler_whistled_disneys_when_you_wish_upon_a/