› added 9 years ago

60

TIL That the New Horizons spacecraft is carrying a U.S. Quarter, in a nod to Greek Mythology, to pay the ferryman Charon.

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GAn8g TIL heavy malt taxation during the Napoleonic wars caused Scotch distilleries to use more raw grains; unintentionally increasing the quality.
78eWp TIL the earliest known reference to a red carpet is from 458 BC, in an Ancient Greek play. After defeating Troy, the king Agamemnon is welcomed home w/ a carpet of crimson tapestries & silk. He's uncomfortable with it, since to him, only gods walk on such luxury, while mortals should be more humble
kvW TIL that the British used Concentration Camps over 40 years before the Germans
vdwj TIL one reliable method that is used to detect art forgeries is to test for cesium-137 and strontium-90 in that these isotopes did not occur naturally prior to the first use of nuclear weapons in 1945.
a8BxA TIL that Prince played all 27 instruments used on his 1978 debut album 'For You'.