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TIL Robin Williams and Christopher Reeve became close friends after meeting at Julliard in 1973. “Occasionally Robin would need to switch off and have a serious conversation with someone, and I was always ready to listen... This has remained true for twenty-five years.”

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OGnpg TIL during WWII, Continental used to test their rubber boot soles by using concentration camp prisoners who would march 30-40 km per day. Those who slowed down or fell were executed by the SS.
v1YD TIL that cats have a non-fatal terminal velocity of around 60mph, and when falling (after relaxing and orienting themselves) they merely ‘parachute’ to earth like a squirrel.
4Aag TIL that lead exposure correlates with low IQ and aggresssion, and that many violent areas in the world still use lead gasoline
yVWjw TIL about Project Plowshare, a US program for the development of techniques to use nuclear explosives for peaceful construction purposes. Proposed uses included widening the Panama Canal, excavate a roadcut in the Mojave Desert for the construction of I-40, and create an artificial harbor in Alaska
VBdvG TIL Architect Liang Sicheng proposed to Mao Zedong to save Beijing’s towering walls, which encircles the capital, in addition to establishing a new capital outside of Beijing to preserve its architecture. All plans were rejected