› added 6 years ago

157

TIL that the US has technically been a metric nation since 1975 but just hasn't enforced the system onto private companies and people.

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rNdVx TIL that the Brennan monorail uses two gyroscopes opposing each other which allows it to balance on a single rail
wJa8 TIL the reason Van Halen had the “No brown M&Ms” clause was to ensure the promoter had read every single word in the contract, for the band and crew’s safety.
m1JwY TIL some 8th century Anglo-Saxon coins contained the words "Muhammed is the Messenger of Allah" written in Arabic, alongside the name of the king in English. This was apparently a result of imitating the aesthetics of Caliphate coins, without understanding the meaning.
rNXNM TIL that Abbott and Costello were among the highest-paid entertainers in the world during World War II. During a national tour in 1942, they sold $85 million in war bonds in 35 days. ($1.64 billion, adjusted for inflation)
X0oGk Today I learned that the Singaporean government displaced the Orang Laut indigenous people of Pulau Semakau to build the Semakau Landfill