› added 5 years ago

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TIL when Germany invaded Denmark in WWII, George de Hevesy used aqua regia to dissolve 2 golden nobel prize medals from Laue and Frank, to prevent nazis from conviscating them. After the war he precipitated the gold out of the acid and the nobel foundation recast the medals and gave them back.

Read more nobelprize.org

via reddit.com

OoOae TIL that a USSR physicist published his equations for solving reflected electromagnetic waves from surfaces, as the Soviet authorities considered them insignificant for military purposes. His work was found by Lockheed in the 1970s, leading to a breakthrough in developing their stealth plane F-117.
7rQNM TIL the record for the greatest 24-hour temperature change ever recorded on earth occurred in 1972 in Loma, Montana when the temperature rose from -54°F (-47°C) on January 14th to 49°F (9°C) on January 15th: an astonishing 103°F (56°C) rise
YpaoA TIL that that attributing depression to spontaneously low serotonin is “deeply misleading and unscientific” and 65-80% of people on antidepressants are depressed again within a year.
J1Bem TIL about Thesmophoria, an ancient Greek festival in honor of the harvest goddess, Demeter. It was restricted to adult women and the rites were kept secret.
e0yK6 TIL that last year a Japanese company launched a satellite into space that can artificially recreate a meteor shower. This spring it should reach the right position and the first test shower will be released over Hiroshima. They expect a colorful meteor shower visible in an area up to 200km wide.