› added 4 years ago

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TIL that the RMS Carpathia only heard the Titanic's distress call because Carpathia's wireless operator, Harold Cottam, was listening to his telegraph while getting into his pajamas, several minutes after his shift had ended. Had he signed off when he was supposed to, there may have been no rescue.

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16aBW TIL that asteroids 1227 through 1234 were named to spell out "G. Stracke" to honor the German astronomer Gustav Stracke who had requested not to have a planet named after him.
gbpA TIL that Russia will spend about $200,000 maintaining Vladimir Lenin’s corpse this year. Maintenance includes bathing the body in chemicals and occasionally replacing parts.
ADv4x TIL Wood frogs in Alaska can hold their pee for up to 8 months, during the region's long winters. They relieve themselves once temperatures increase. The urine actually helps keep them alive while they hibernates, with special microbes in their gut turning the urea (urine's main waste) into nitrogen
OAQX TIL there is an unaired version of the pilot of “Archer” where he is a raptor. Throughout the entire episode, he has no lines. He just makes raptor noises and it makes no sense.
p8ZVZ TIL that the man who played the first zombie in the video for Michael Jackson's Thriller, as well as the zombie whose arm falls off, is a makeup and special effects designer who went on to help create Daft Punk's famous helmets, amongst other things