Age of first marriage went down with the baby boomers.
Source: Career and Family by Claudia Goldin
Pakistan is an acronym, and was formed through mass (forced) migration of Muslims and Hindus to the appropriate side of the line.
Source: Throughline podcast: Road to Partition
Scarborough, UK cancelled their new year's eve fireworks because they didn't want to scare the visiting walrus, Thor.
Source: John Stevenson on mastadon
There are no new DC school lottery slots for my 7th grader to be, so we're almost definitely moving this summer
Anne Frank, MLKJ, and Barbara Walters were all born the same year.
Source: Jessica Leight on mastadon
Kids do better with same race foster families than different race foster families.
Source: “Foster Family Characteristics and Children's Educational Outcomes” by Emma Kalish
The 12th night after Christmas is the official start of Mardi Gras in New Orleans, and is celebrated with a Joan of Arc parade
Before learning to bury on higher ground or in vaults, coffins would pop out of the ground in New Orleans, which may have contributed to the popularity of ghost stories/voodoo.
Source: New Orleans Train Garden
Women delay mental health treatment for longer when they have longer maternity leave.
Source: Olivia Healy’s AEA presentation “Parenthood and Health: Gender Differences in the Impact of a First Birth”
Even before the atomic bombs were dropped, the allies had inflicted huge civilian casualties on Japan though firebombing of their cities.
Source: New Orleans WWII museum
When the Taliban took back control of Afghanistan they released all of the prisoners, some of whom went after the female judges who sentenced them.
Source: Criminal podcast: They Came for the Judges
This summer will be the first time I've been south of the equator.
Flowers developed suddenly evolutionarily, blooming everywhere all at once.
Source: Radiolab: Universe in Verse
A road is for getting from one place to another, a street is a destination.
Source: 99% Invisible: Mini-Stories Volume 16
CSPAN's cameras are usually controlled by the party leadership, but had free reign in the chaos of Kevin McCarthy's bid for house speaker.
Source: someone on mastadon
The pregnant workers fairness act was passed as part of this year's federal budget
Source: The Indicator Pocast: The Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, Explained
Redlining affected the genetics of the wildlife in neighborhoods
Source: Short Wave podcast: Redlining’s Ripple Effects Go Beyond Humans
Zip in zip code stands for Zone Improvement Plan.
Source: Someone on mastadon
The US and UK dug a secret tunnel under Berlin during the cold war to tap the Communists' phone lines.
Source: International Spy Museum
The white stuff in Oreos contains titanium dioxide, which is what makes it so white.
Source: International Spy Museum
Folsom Lake (/reservoir) is dynamically deciding whether to release water ahead of storms, rather than following the historic practice of automatically releasing a set amount.
Source: Short Wave podcast: California's flooding reveals we're still building cities for the climate of the past
GSA locality pay was introduced in 1994.
Source: A colleague
The Amazon Smile program (now ending) was created so people would go directly to Amazon to find products, not go through Google, saving Amazon money
Source: Someone on mastadon
Realtors run open houses mostly to get clients, not sell houses.
Source: My realtor
Terry Pratchett was Britain's bestselling author until J.K. Rowling replaced him.
Source: Terry Pratchett: A Life With Footnotes by Rob Wilkins
Hugelkultur is a German term for a form of garden that is built up into a big mound with logs inside forming the base.
Source: Takoma Horticulture Club Listserve
Ponzi's scheme was to use arbitrage to make money on international stamps sold at different prices in the US and abroad. But he never figured out the details, and just used the money from later investors to pay earlier ones.
Source: Planet Money Podcast: Charles Ponzi’s Scheme
Vietnam uses a cat rather than a rabbit for this cycle of the lunar new year.
DACA needs to be renewed every 2 years and costs $500 each time
Source: “The Impact of Immigration Status on Marriage: Evidence from Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals” by John Soriano
A green card shortage due to per-country caps for applicants from China and India started in 2005
Source: “Green Card Quotas and the Misallocation of Talent: Evidence from the STEM Doctoral Labor Market” by Holden Diethorn
There are three types of green cards: EB-1 is for multinational executives, outstanding professors and other internationally recognized experts, EB-2 is for PhDs and MAs, and EB-3 is for Bachelor’s and below
Source: “Green Card Quotas and the Misallocation of Talent: Evidence from the STEM Doctoral Labor Market” by Holden Diethorn