› added 12 years ago

96

TIL Netflix created House of Cards by noticing that viewers liked Kevin Spacey and David Fincher movies.

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j6d0M TIL about the Egyptian god Bes, protector of good things and households, whose depiction differs from the other Egyptian gods in that he faces forward rather than a side profile.
W7Rv4 TIL NYC didn't use trash bins until they recently introduced them to combat notorious rat infestation and rancid smells
a6DJ TIL Hitler so admired the Greek resistance to the invading German army, that he ordered the release of all Greek POWs for “their gallant bearing”
nLyY TIL that “flotsam” is floating wreckage, “jetsam” is cargo that is purposely thrown overboard, “lagan” is goods lying at the bottom of the ocean but reclaimable, and “derelict” is cargo at the bottom of the ocean but lost. These terms are part of the law of admiralty and marine salvage.
NXkNE TIL that Danish fishermen sprinkled rabbit blood and cocaine on their ships to prevent Nazi bloodhounds from sniffing out anyone hiding below deck. This allowed them to smuggle nearly all Danish Jews to safety in Sweden.