› added 9 years ago

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TIL that Sgt. William Carney received the Medal of Honor for his actions during the 2nd Battle of Ft. Wagner, in which Carney grabbed the U.S. flag as the flag bearer fell, carried the flag to the enemy ramparts and back, saying, “Boys, I only did my duty; the old flag never touched the ground!”

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Yb9G TIL in 2003 a herd of elephants encircled a camp of antelope hunters in Empangani, South Africa. The 11 elephants surrounded the enclosure keeping the hunters at bay, while the matriarch used her trunk to unhook the gates of the captured antelope, allowing them to run free.
rnee TIL that there is evidence that the British Admiralty deliberately send the luxury liner Lusitania into waters patrolled by German U-boats in the hope that the ship would be attacked and sunk with Americans on board, thus drawing the US into WWI. 1,198 people drowned, inc. many women and children
kOaGm TIL 12 camels were disqualified from a Saudi beauty pageant when a veterinarian was caught injecting their noses, lips, and jaw with botox to make them more attractive.
VXBB TIL the use of the letter “Z” to indicate snoring or sleep was first documented in an August 2, 1903 comic strip called Katzenjammer Kids
e0Gg TIL the // at the start of a URL are unnecessary, but the inventor thought they were a good idea at the time.