› added 10 years ago

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TIL that during the Manhattan Project, the emergency nuclear reactor shutdown (SCRAM) mechanism was simply a man with an axe.

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via reddit.com

16RyV TIL about Irving Thalberg, known as the Boy Wonder his films were the first to carve out an international market and set the path for making Hollywood the center of the largest movie industry in the world. He achieved all this before his death at 37.
W70l4 TIL that a toast sandwich is something that exists. There was a recipe for it in the ‘invalid cookery’ section of the 1861 Book of Household Management and in 2011, it was recreated by the Royal Society of Chemistry.
DQ0Bp TIL That the deadliest blizzard in history occurred in Iran in 1972. In some places over 25 feet of snow fell.
N7eme TIL a man from China bought a first class ticket which came with access to a VIP lounge that had free food. He rescheduled over 300 times in a year to enjoy over 300 free meals. When investigated, he canceled the ticket and got a full refund
loGeK TIL that sailors slept in hammocks, as they stayed well balanced even if the ship was in motion. The Royal Navy formally adopted the sling hammock in 1597 much after Columbus discovered them in the Bahamas. Sailors got so accustomed to hammocks that they even took them back on leave.