› added 1 month ago

12

TIL that professional walking was America's first major spectator sport.

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k5ZW TIL that A man survived for 40 years without sleeping.
X0ow8 TIL round storm clouds that look like cotton balls or puffy batter being deep-fried are called mammatus clouds
9YXgD TIL that during Napoleon's exile on Saint Helena, no ship could leave the island until the governor laid eyes on him to make sure he doesn't escape. Napoleon sometimes hid just to cause problems to ships trying to leave the harbour
VMLbQ TIL that in the movie Noah's Ark, filmed in 1928, the flood scene at the movie's climax was created by actually dumping 600,000 gallons of water onto the set. Three extras drowned and many suffered broken bones. This led to the introduction of safety regulations for movie stunts in 1929.
J1LGV TIL about guayule (pronounced why-OO-lee). An alternative to rubber trees, it has a rubber content of 3% - 7%. It can be grown in hot, desert climates requiring a fraction of the water/fertilizer that rubber trees do. It's also weed, insect and disease resistant. It was used by the US in WW2.