› added 4 years ago

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TIL about Project Retro, an idea proposed by the US Air Force around the 1960's that called for a thousand rocket engines to be strapped to the equator of Earth which would allow the US to slow/stop the rotation of the planet in an effort to "dodge" Soviet ICBMs.

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6E7BW TIL in 2012 a 22-year-old man on a business trip sent a wrong-number text to a woman 30 years older; she replied that she'd like to hang out anyway. They went to a concert together, started dating, got married, and in 2019 she needed a kidney transplant and he donated his kidney to her.
ryOM TIL there exist humans with four cones in their eyes (tetrachromats) that can perceive color differences the rest of us cannot. Because it is based on a gene variation of the X chromosome, it is believed that only women can be tetrachromats.
OGM67 TIL A new species of whale, the Pacificito, was discovered off the coast of Mexico in 2019. It's the first new whale species found in over 20 years, with a unique skull shape, dorsal fin, and vocalizations. The small population size and limited range make conservation efforts crucial.
yQYYM TIL After Marvin Gaye recorded “What’s Going On” with two Detroit Lions players, he tried to join the team as a wide receiver even though he had never played football. Head Coach Joe Schmidt declined, believing he’d be too much of a moving target.
GEM1 TIL the winner of the marathon at the first modern Olympics (1896) stopped for a glass of wine at a local inn along the route