› added 1 month ago

5

TIL 50yrs ago the Arecibo Message was sent into space to communicate human existence to potential extraterrestrial life.

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EVgx TIL there is a plant that is able to simultaneously produce both tomatoes and potatoes, cleverly named the “Ketchup ‘n’ Fries” plant
v1vb7 TIL - In 1992, Sinead O’Connor’s career suffered a near lethal blow when she ripped up a photo of the Pope during a performance on Saturday Night Live. This is long before the public was aware of the Catholic Church's role in covering up child abuse, and the incident ignited a firestorm
dbyd TIL the Voyager 1 spacecraft, currently more than 20 billion km from earth, is powered by a radioisotope with a half-life of 87.7 years. It has been slowly shutting down systems since 2007 to conserve energy, and by 2025 will go completely dark as it loses the ability to power a single instrument.
rRKrM TIL Mexico City is built in a bowl with no natural escape for water. Floods in 1629 left the city underwater for 4 years.
0Dkp TIL that the anecdote that says a frog will jump out of a pot of boiling water if thrown in, but sit in a pot of water as it is slowly brought to a boil has been shown to be untrue by modern biologists.