Post * 84aL — Curious Curator

› added 8 years ago

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TIL Douglas Bader was a legless flying ace (RAF) in WW2 . His success was partly because of his having no legs; pilots pulling high “g-forces” in combat often “blacked out” as the flow of blood from the brain to other body parts, usually the legs. As he had no legs he could remain conscious longer.

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N8W8 TIL that John R. Fox deliberately called for artillery fire on his own position, after his position was overrun, in order to defeat a German attack in the vicinity of Sommocolonia, northern Italy during World War II.

69QXZ TIL that fuzzy/hairy caterpillars will become moths, and smooth caterpillars will become butterflies.

dD0DZ TIL the 1975 union promo song "Look For the Union Label" was popular enough to be used in political campaigns, spoofed by SNL and decades later by South Park. but it failed in its goal to slow the growth of non-union clothing manufacturing jobs and foreign imports

negpr TIL that Bismarck was shot twice as he walked in Berlin, then turned around to confront his attacker and was shot three more times. The would-be assassin was aprehended and Bismarck continued his day as if nothing had happened: three bullets had grazed him, and two had simply bounced off his ribcage

J1gej TIL in 2018, a girl who was offered an internship with NASA had her offer revoked after she told a retired NASA engineer to "suck my dick and balls." The engineer, Homer Hickman of "October Sky" fame, nevertheless attempted to get her internship back.