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TIL World War I trenches were constructed of sandbags, planks of wood, plaited wicker, tangled barbed wire, or even just mud. The trench systems on the Western Front were about 475 miles long, extending from the English Channel to the Swiss Alps, though not in a continuous line.

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neWPY TIL that the Italian painter Raphael was often accompanied by fifty scholars daily; when Michangelo greeted him one day, he said "You walk surrounded by an entourage like a general," and Raphael responded, "And you, you walk alone like an executioner."
X0onP TIL of Cáin Adomnáin, dubbed "Europe's first human rights treaty". Created in the year 697, was a set of laws - which kings across Ireland and parts of Scotland mutually agreed to follow - that guaranteed the safety of non-combatants in warfare.
ZpayR TIL: the term plastic explosive has nothing to do with modern plastic, it denotes explosives that can be shaped by hand, stemming from the original meaning of the word plastic, meaning something malliable/formable.
Vn8Q TIL there is a mile-long zipline in Hoonah, Alaska, that starts 1,300ft above sea level and reaches speeds of up to 60mph.
A6p4 TIL Research shows the best way to get over somebody is to get under somebody: “Less time between a break-up and a new relationship generally predicts greater well-being, higher self-esteem, and more respect for a new partner.”