› added 12 years ago

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TIL that Sugihara, a Japanese diplomat, disobeyed direct orders and wrote thousands of visas for Jewish refugees saving their lives.

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XrkQ TIL a monkey discovered in 2010 is known as the Burmese sneezing monkey because it sneezes uncontrollably when it rains [x-post from /r/DamnInteresting].
xbd7 TIL William Lawrence Murphy invented the Murphy Bed because he lived in a one room apartment and the strict moral code of the time frowned upon a woman entering a man’s bedroom. Murphy’s invention converted his bedroom into a parlor, thus enabling him to entertain women.
B9ey TIL: That small plastic spheres are floated on top of reservoirs to help stop evaporation during droughts.
OJ86 TIL the Seinfield episode, “The Contest” wherein the 4 main characters see who can go the longest without masturbating, never once contained the word “masturbation” and won an Emmy for achievement in writing.
Me0Da TIL Batman the animated series issued a standing order to the animation department that all backgrounds be painted using light colors on black paper (as opposed to the industry standard of dark colors on white paper)