› added 11 years ago

151

TIL: Gypsy is actually short for Egyptian.

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9GMm TIL of the worst maritime disaster in US history. On April 27, 1865. 3 of the 4 boilers on the steamboat Sultana exploded, killing 1196 people. The boat was 1779 people over capacity. The disaster is mostly overlooked due to John Wilkes Booth being killed the previous day
aw0bb TIL that in 1997 three boys in war- torn Sierre Leone were on the brink of starvation, when they spotted a single yam under a tree. They desperately went to dig it up, but when they did they discovered a 100 carat diamond underneath.
D1WWV TIL: All of the world's four deepest caves are in located in Abkhazia. The record-holder is Veryovkina Cave, which goes down at least 1.3 miles. Due to the hazards and need for specialized rope techniques, "the round trip —top to bottom and back— takes professional speleologists about a week."
J1dR4 TIL Gremlins 2: The New Batch famously has a scene where the gremlins break the fourth wall and mess with the projector until Hulk Hogan forces them to stop. For the VHS release the gremlins mess with the tape and change channels until John Wayne forces them to stop.
9wJr7 TIL that it's not a crime to escape prison in many countries