Post * 4dpN — Curious Curator

› added 12 years ago

234

TIL the Baltimore Gas and Electric Company once sent out scratch & sniff stickers to educate the public on the smell of a gas leak, only for it to backfire when the smell of the unopened envelopes were mistaken for gas leaks.

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bLO9 TIL there is a secured village in the Netherlands specifically for people with dementia, where they can act out a normal life while being monitored and assisted by caretakers in disguise.

nerdG TIL that the pressurized bodies of early airships were called “envelopes,” a term that persisted in aviation to later describe the ideal flight performance of an airplane. When early NASA test pilots reached higher altitude, they called it “pushing the envelope” which is where we get the phrase.

OGGMY TIL that the oldest Congressional District in the United States is Delaware's at-large Congressional District. It has existed uninterrupted since the 1st United States Congress in 1789.

DpPj TIL that speed is now so important in financial trading that a new $300 million transatlantic cable was laid down in order to shave 5 milliseconds off communications between New York and London.

mxnLO TIL that Olivia de Haviland and Joan Fontaine were sisters and lifelong rivals. They were born 15 months apart and were rivals as kids. When Joan won an Oscar against her sister in 1942, she ignored Olivia’s congratulations. 5 years later Olivia did the same to Joan when she won.