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TIL that humans have been giving animals personal names since at least 2300 BC

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neNxB TIL about Vulcan, an isolated WV town which, after a bridge collapse left them with no legal road access, appealed to the Soviet Union for funding. As intended, the Soviet Union used Vulcan as an example of American failure, prompting international attention and 1.3M$ of US funding for a new bridge.
rNEQ0 TIL the US government owns 80.1% of all the land in Nevada, 61.3% of all the land in Alaska, and 24.7% of all the land in the US.
VeZG TIL that after the release of the 1983 movie “Wargames”, visitors were so unimpressed with what NORAD actually looked like, that NORAD realized it was time to give their facility a major upgrade
wLEK8 TIL The liquid breathing scene in The Abyss is based on reality, and the white rat was actually locked in a box of fluorocarbon (the "breathable" solution).
awpmM TIL The New York Times was hoaxed into running an article about "grunge speak." A reporter pressured a receptionist from Sub Pop Records about whether grunge fans had their own slang. On the spot, she made up terms like "harsh realm," "cob nobbler" and "lamestain." The article was never corrected.