› added 4 months ago

43

TIL about the Women's 1500m at the 2012 Summer Olympics, called "one of the dirtiest race in history", where six of the first nine finishers (1st, 2nd, 4th, 5th, 7th, and 9th) have been found to have been doping and the 1st, 2nd, 4th, 7th and 9th finishers were disqualified as of now.

Read more bbc.com

via reddit.com

8aLoV TIL In order to protest the high tariffs enforced by a U.K. censorship board, a filmmaker sent in a 10 hour “movie” of white paint drying. They had to watch the entire film.
pYO9Z TIL about the "cocktail party effect"—our brain's ability to focus on one conversation in a noisy room. This ability lets us tune into specific voices while filtering out background chatter, and even pick up important words like our name even when we are not paying attention.
69Pm TIL U2 has pushed for countries to give 1% to African aid which is paid by tax payer money, of which U2 was exempt under Irish tax laws. When Ireland reformed its laws, U2 moved operations to the Netherlands to pay less in taxes which would support their cause.
69Xvm TIL landlords in Glasgow, Scotland tried to increase rent by 25% on women whose husbands were fighting in World War 1. The women organised a rent strike and stopped bailiffs entering their buildings by throwing flour bombs at them and pulling down their trousers.
7VLx TIL when using “perfect strategy” in blackjack, the casino only has a 2% edge over the player in the long run. Due to some players playing with their instincts versus the math behind perfect strategy, the casino can gain 10 times their original advantage.