› added 2 months ago

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TIL the original penguins, called the Great auk, are already extinct. What we call penguins now are called such because their appearance is similar to the Great auk.

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XEjwr TIL that 1,418 entrance steps (one for each day the Soviet Union fought in the WWII) of the new 95m-tall “Main Cathedral of the Russian Armed Forces” are forged from melted-down hardware seized from Nazi troops.
mQDx TIL In 2015, a tiny Tokyo restaurant with only 9 seats became the first ramen restaurant in the world to obtain a Michelin star.
wVB6 TIL that you are never actually touching anything. Your atoms’ electrons repel objects when they are 10^-8 meters away from you, but you can feel the force of the resistance. Right now, you’re technically hovering.
WyG8 TIL that crows and ravens are ranked among the most intelligent animals on the planet. They are known to have the ability to use tools. Some crows have even invented a method of bait fishing with crumbs stolen from humans.
xVk5 TIL that in 1994 a stimulant was synthesised that can keep you awake for 48hrs at a time, without the need for catchup sleep and minimal side effects. It is only prescribed for narcolepsy but it has been suggested that it is used in the military to keep soldiers awake.