› added 3 years ago

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TIL of the "stability-instability paradox": as nuclear deterrence makes large-scale conflict between two powerful states unthinkable, it paradoxically increases the frequency of small-scale/proxy conflicts, as neither side fears the other will want to escalate a small conflict into a large one.

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kJwXg TIL dogs don't just sled - they were traditionally used to pull carts for delivering supplies and carrying people. They can still be found as a novelty in parts of Europe for children's rides, or as an attraction, and there is even a whole dog sport called carting for the most impressive pullers!
LXV0 TIL X-rays are named such because Röntgen didn’t have a name for them, and temporarily used the mathematical designation “x” for something unknown.
eWb4 TIL that Victorinox the manufacturer of the Swiss Army Knife lost 40% of its business due to the 9/11 attack.
a8dx9 TIL that stealing sand is the largest organized crime activity in India.
5VrRp TIL that perhaps counterintuitively, defibrillators do not shock the heart to get it to beat normally- the shock actually stops the heart from beating altogether. This allows the natural automatic pacemaker of the heart to operate again and restore the heart's rhythm back to normal.