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TIL Ancient Romans used flying penis amulets to protect them and their children from illness

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via reddit.com

11wd TIL a “rainmaker” was hired in 1916 to end a drought in San Diego. He was so successful he flooded the city, killing 50. Turns out he had likely developed an early form of cloud seeding.
paE4 TIL the world’s largest parrot, the Kakapo, is the world’s only flightless parrot. It is nocturnal, herbivorous, and is one of the world’s longest-living birds with an average lifespan of 95 years. It is critically endangered. As of 2012, there were only 126 living individuals known.
5Y1Q8 TIL about how British forces burned the city of Cork in Ireland in 1920 as an act of retribution in the Irish War of Independence
d5PK TIL That one of the main usages of Agent Orange in Vietnam was to destroy crops in friendly territory to force people to move to cities. Agent orange is still legal in warfare, due to a loophole.
Rjr1 TIL Swedish millionaire Johan Eliasch purchased 400,000 acres of the Amazon Rainforest from a logging company for $14,000,000 for the sole purpose of its preservation.