› added 4 years ago

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TIL that Joseph-Ignace Guillotin did not invent the guillotine. He opposed executions and when he was unable to have them abolished, he suggested "decapitation by means of a simple mechanism." as the most humane method. When the device was finally invented, it was given his name.

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yQZXp TIL there are less sharks now more than ever because they often habitate on the same routes as industrial fishing ships, and are caught as bycatch. As the apex predators of the oceans, sharks keep other marine life in healthy balance and help regulate the oceans. Reduce sharks numbers = reduce us.
LQpL0 TIL That Ancient Egyptians didn't name their cats individually like dogs, instead they were all called by the Ancient Egyptian equivalent of "meow", or "Miu", an onomatopoetic reference to the sound that cats make.
78WmL TIL that Icehotel Jukkasjärvi, the world's first ice hotel, first opened in 1990 in Sweden. The entire hotel is made out of snow and ice blocks from the Torne River. The ice is used for Icebar designs and even the glasses. Interestingly, everything melts away and returns to the Torne River.
NwgM TIL that Fathead lowered the price of their Lebron James wall graphics from $99.99 to $17.41, the birth year of Benedict Arnold, upon his departure from the Cavaliers.
GYQXj TIL that Japan once fooled the americans that they were going to invade Alaska in WW2 when in fact no one was present in the area, the americans landed troops on the island of Kiska to prevent the invasion and still suffered 313 casualties from landmines and friendly fire.