› added 11 years ago

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TIL: Narwhals’ ‘horn’ is actually an erupted left tooth, that can sense temperature, salinity, particle density, and can 'feel’

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jj9M TIL that Saudi Arabia still occasionally sentences people to crucifixion, most recently in March 2013.
GYpVQ TIL on the upper floors of the 2700-ft Burj Khalifa skyscraper, the sun is still seen for several minutes after it has set at ground level. Dubai clerics have ruled that residents above the 80th floor should wait 2 additional minutes to break their Ramadan fast, and those above the 150th, 3 minutes.
grED4 TIL During the 19th century, people would attend clinics where they could receive electric shock treatments using devices like the "Electro-Conductive Bath." The idea was that these shocks could apparently cure everything from insomnia to depression.
ZpVOQ TIL wasps are valuable pest control agents and pollinators.
MegVB TIL that doctors in the past used to taste the patient's urine to diagnose various diseases. If the urine tasted "wonderfully sweet as if it were imbued with honey or sugar" it was a sure sign of diabetes.