› added 12 years ago

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TIL every year in the mekong river in Thailand, hundreds of fireballs erupt from the surface of the water, and nobody knows what causes them. locals believe a mythical serpent called Naga spits fire from the water. The event is known as Naga fireballs.

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xaL7 TIL Taurine, a common ingredient in energy drinks, was first isolated from the bile of an ox, but now is synthesized in labs. Cat food is required by law to contain taurine, since cats without a taurine-rich diet will go blind, and lose their hair and teeth.
Wkkld TIL In 2006, The FBI planted an informant pretending to be a radical Muslim in a mosque, and the Muslims in the mosque reported him to the FBI.
odG8 TIL Dr. Francis M. Fesmire won the 2006 Ig Nobel Prize in Medicine for discovering how to cure the hiccups with rectal massage.
9YAKQ TIL about Rai Stones, large donut-shaped stones weighing up to 4 tons which were used as currency on the island of Yap. Because it is hard to move the stones, buying something simply involves agreeing the stone changes ownership and 'recording' it in oral history.
mRmp TIL that homosexual black swans form temporary threesomes with females to obtain eggs and then driving away the female after she lays the egg.