› added 8 years ago

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TIL of jails that offer upgraded cells, for roughly $75 to $127/day, the convicts get a small cell behind a regular door, distance from violent offenders and, in some cases, the right to bring an iPod or computer

YpxJG TIL of Christopher Thomas Knight, AKA the North Pond Hermit. He entered the woods of Maine at age 20 and lived without human contact for 27 years, committing roughly 40 robberies a year for supplies. The only time he spoke to another human was when he said "hi" to a passing hiker.
D14OD TIL Broccoli, cabbage, kale, collared greens, Brussels sprouts and cauliflower are all the same plant species, bred selectively across thousands of years to produce all these different vegetables and more.
VM75m TIL of Marty Irby who spoke out against soring TN Walking Horses: caustic stuff & weights are put on legs; a horse throws its leg in the air reacting to the pain which trains the horse for The Big Lick high-stepping. Irby got death threats & even his wife left him for taking a stance against soring.
B56r TIL Earth is being shadowed by a minor planet called 2010 TK7, a 300 meter diameter trojan asteroid that orbits the sun in a spiral pattern every 365.3 days, 60° ahead of Earth’s track through space. It has a gravitational force 1/20000 that of Earth and was only discovered in 2010.
m1MJY TIL that John Elwes (1714–1789), MP for Berkshire, was an eccentric miser believed to inspire Dickens’ Scrooge. Inheriting vast wealth, he lived in rags, ate spoiled food, and would walk miles in the rain to save coach fare, amassing £500,000 (£81 million in 2021) by his death.