› added 5 years ago

1908

TIL During the Dust Bowl, in Texas and Oklahoma static electricity was so bad children would run up to their mothers for a hug, and both would wake up on the ground, knocked unconscious by a massive static shock. Two men shaking hands could knock each other out.

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OobK1 TIL that in 1971, as part of an experiment to study the causes and effects of landslides, Japanese scientists watered down a hill using fire hoses to simulate the effect of a torrential rainstorm. The soil on the hill gave way and the resulting landslide killed 4 scientists and 11 observers.
grKbD TIL: In 1987, two Chicago TV stations were hijacked by an unknown person in a Max Headroom mask, interrupting broadcasts with bizarre and still-unsolved pirate transmissions.
mWvv TIL While filming “Indiana Jones”, the crew played a joke on Harrison Ford. While chained to a large stone, Barbara Streisand appeared in a dominatrix outfit. She proceeded to whip him before Carrie Fisher then threw herself in front of Ford to protect him. This entire sequence was filmed.
pYwJA TIL about Major Dick Bong: The Greatest Fighter Pilot In American History (Flew Under The Golden Gate Bridge)
9y4X TIL China has been producing fake chicken eggs since the 90s. The production cost is less than half of a real egg. They are made from a mixture of resin, starch, coagulant and pigments, while algae gives them proper viscosity. The shell is made from paraffin wax, gypsum powder, and calcium carbonate