› added 5 years ago

253

TIL the optimal temperature for economic growth is 13°C

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D1ZDe TIL hat-makers in the 19th century regularly used mercury in the manufacturing of felt hats, which caused a high rate of poisoning and led to neurological damage like slurred speech, memory loss, and tremors. This was the inspiration for the Mad Hatter character in Alice in Wonderland.
kORAd TIL notorious gangster Al Capone had the mental age of a 12 year old at the time of his death and the years prior to his death, despite being 48 years old. This was caused by mental illness due to untreated neurosyphilis.
w7w6 TIL up to a quarter of California smog originates in China
pr0A TIL that Bluetooth was named after a Danish king, and the logo is a rune-ligature composed of his initials.
erl5 TIL that in 2003 a BBC news team was bombed by US fighter jets in a “friendly fire” incident, the entire ordeal was caught on camera (warning: some disturbing images)