› added 5 years ago

196

TIL that, when the last woolly mammoths died out in 1650 BC, only about 4000 years ago. By that time, the pyramids of Giza were already a thousand years old.

Read more io9.gizmodo.com

via reddit.com

XEP76 TIL that the so-called "Spanish flu" was only known as such because WWI wartime censors made sure to keep reporting of illness in their own countries minimal so as to not appear weak. However, the news was free to report on Spain, which was neutral.
PO7J TIL the entire crew of the USS William D Porter, a WW2 destroyer, were placed under arrest after accidentally firing a torpedo at President Roosevelt aboard the USS Iowa during training drills. Other mishaps and failings give the ship one of the worst careers in history.
dVBZ TIL that the serial killer known as the “Hillside Strangler”, Kenneth Bianchi, while actively murdering women was also applying to join the ranks of the LAPD and attended several ride alongs with police officers who were searching for the Hillside Strangler.
v1oxr TIL the actor who played George Mcfly rejected the role for Part II of the series because of the script. Jeffery Weissman was hired and using a face mold made in the first movie and prosthetics were able to recreate the original actors likeness resulting in a law suit against the company.
O58a TIL Winston Churchill covered up the “Katyn Massacre” of 20,000 poles by the soviets to pursue the alliance, assuring them that “We shall certainly oppose vigorously any ‘investigation’ by the International Red Cross… Such investigation would be a fraud and its conclusions reached by terrorism”.