› added 4 years ago

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TIL if the Queen pops her handbag on the table at dinner, it reportedly means she wants dinner to end within the next five minutes. If it goes on the floor, rumour has it, she's tired of the conversation and wants to be whisked off quickly by her lady-in-waiting.

GYEy1 TIL about Peggy Frank, a longtime U.S. postal carrier, who died of hyperthermia while delivering mail in 117 degree weather. Most of the US Postal Services' 230,000 vehicles do not have air conditioning.
yQg7l TIL of the Cocoanut Grove fire, a deadly nightclub fire in 1940's Boston that led to laws requiring clearly lit exit signs and outward-swinging exit doors; it also saw the introduction of the now-widely used Lund and Browder chart, which estimates burn sizes on burn victims.
OoDg TIL Because of South Park’s Scientology episode, The Church of Scientology hired people to spy on Matt and Trey to find something on them to use for blackmail. The Church became frustrated when their investigation turned up nothing but the fact that they’re pretty normal people.
OGMEX TIL During the Second World War the Dutch Resistance and victims of the occupation were funneled 83 million guilders (equivalent to 450 million Euros 2021) by Gijs van Hall. Hall was a Resistance member and bank official who wrote millions in fraudulent loans to aid the Dutch people.
J1KV TIL that in 1927 a fictional student was enrolled at Georgia Tech. Since then, this student has received all undergraduate degrees, fought in the war, served on Mad magazine’s Board of Directors and was the leading candidate for Time’s person of the year.