› added 5 years ago

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TIL about Disco Demolition Night. In the Late 70s the White Sox hired a shock-jock, anti-disco campaigner to promote an event where fans were urged to bring in disco records for discounted ticket priced. These records were collected and then blown up. The even ended with riot police dispersal.

4XEVa TIL about the Oh-My-God Particle, a proton traveling at about 99.99999999999999999999951% the speed of light. It is the fastest moving object ever recorded and as it hit the atmosphere it carried the kinetic energy equivalent to a baseball traveling at 50MPH, all in one particle.
PAaw TIL a man claiming to be a 500-year-old vampire was arrested in 2011 after attacking a woman. During his arrest, he shouted at the pursuing officers that he “didn’t want to have to feed on humans”.
p8DBb TIL the longest place name in any English-speaking country and perhaps even the world is a hill in New Zealand named 'Taumata­whakatangihanga­koauau­o­tamatea­turi­pukaka­piki­maunga­horo­nuku­pokai­whenua­ki­tana­tahu'
rRJpw TIL of Iris Robinson, an anti-gay Irish politician whose career ended after the exposure of an extramarital affair with the (40 years younger) adult child of a family friend. In response, a Facebook group was set up attempting to get the song "Mrs. Robinson" to No. 1 in the Official UK Singles Chart
NDZJ TIL in 1947 the US government simulated a biological warfare attack by spraying bacteria on the entire city of San Francisco without informing the residents or obtaining consent, in violation of The Nuremberg Code.