› added 10 years ago

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TIL adding milk before pouring tea was originally intended to cool it so poor-quality cups would not crack from the heat. Adding one’s milk second showed you had the finest china and were a better class of person.

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MebWK TIL that sea toads are deep-sea dwellers that have special fins for walking on the seafloor. They also have massive, inflatable gill chambers that expand their bodies with seawater, allowing them to take up more oxygen and protect themselves by puffing up just as pufferfish do.
mX9x TIL when a paper couldn’t think of a name for an article about Chris Hadfield they rang the Air Force who said “Just call it ‘Canadian Wins Top Test Pilot’ or something to that effect.” A friend sent Chris a copy of the article, it read "Canadian Wins Top Test Pilot or Something to that Effect”
EgyDw TIL Tecumseh, a Shawnee chief, warrior, and diplomat created an intertribal confederacy named Prophetstown to secure a nation that would be given the same rights, respect, and freedom as Canada and America. He died fighting during the war of 1812 before his dream nation became a reality.
WvXB TIL the original order of assassins killed their targets in broad daylight in crowded areas, with a rule to not kill any civilians. A contemporary Jewish historian wrote of them: “they are believers of the word of their elder and everyone everywhere fears them, because they even kill kings.”
WkobA TIL that the popular spiral depiction of the Milky Way is actually of another galaxy, Messier 74. Since we live in the Milky Way, we can't take a picture of it from the outside.