› added 8 months ago

41

TIL about the Wärtsilä RT-flex96C, the largest reciprocating engine in the world. It is a diesel engine for container ships, up to 14 cylinders, 107,390 HP, 5.6M lb-ft of torque, uses up to 250 tons of fuel per day.

Read more wikipedia.org

via reddit.com

pY9Ze TIL up until the 90s Oscar voters for best documentary used to show up to a screening theater and given a flashlight. 15 minutes after a documentary is played, voters can turn on their flashlight to stop the documentary. If 3/4 of the voters have their lights on, they can move on to the next doc.
X0p8Q TIL that sex verification in elite sports was tried via chromosomal testing. It was abandoned by the IOC in 1999 after athletes' chromosome results not aligning with their assigned sex.
BNvy TIL in 1913, 4 year old Bobby Dunbar went missing, and police found him living as Bruce Anderson 8 months later. After jailing the kidnapper, he was returned to the Dunbar family. In 2004, DNA tests proved that he was, in fact, Bruce Anderson.
1gAD TIL that Kim Jong-il supposedly shot a 38 under par in golf his first time trying the sport. A feat that required no less than 5 hole in ones. The accomplishment is 25 shots better than the world record. Having been satisfied with his preformance, he promptly retired from the sport forever.
9YDlm TIL that out at sea, a tsunami is only about a metre high, and could pass a boat without being noticed. As it approaches the shore, it’s the sudden deceleration from about 800km/h to 50km/h which creates the immense wave