› added 1 month ago

5

TIL That during the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962, a black bear and incorrect wiring sounded a claxon that caused nuclear armed F-106 fighters to scramble from a base in Wisconsin. It was found to be a false alarm as the planes were already rolling towards takeoff.

gMjG8 TIL that the world's oceans/seas can and often do have distinct NATURAL borders (clines). Not just nebulous boundaries drawn on maps, large bodies of water can differ so greatly in substance & salinity that there can be a distinct, vivid line between even WHOLE OCEANS, e.g Pacific vs. Atlantic!
epkM4 TIL that the arbitrary decision decades ago about the heights of high hurdles and distance between the hurdles created a small band of heights of males that could actually compete at a high level in the event. The women's hurdles are shorter relative to their height, and don't have the same effect.
a6YN TIL that David Allan Coe, when asked why he killed a homosexual in prison, he replied “I’m not sure he was a homosexual, well I guess he was, he wanted to fuck me in my ass. You know, I mean, I might not have killed him if he wanted me to fuck him in his ass, but it was a different situation.”
ZDMR TIL Terrence Howard was paid more than Robert Downey Jr. in Iron Man. He also believes the movie killed his career.
vVJB TIL that although the United States Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station, having no longitudinal bearings, need not keep to a time zone, as a matter of practicality they operate on New Zealand clocks since resupply flights originate in Christchurch, on the South Island.