› added 7 months ago

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TIL about Gene Sharp, called the "Machiavelli of Nonviolence," who wrote "From Dictatorship to Democracy." Translated into over 30 languages, his work influenced global movements against oppressive regimes, showing how nonviolent conflict can dismantle autocracies without violence.

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x6BR7 TIL in 1972 Canada had a contest to complete the saying "As Canadian as..." The winner was Heather Scott who answered "As Canadian as possible under the circumstances."
rRKrM TIL Mexico City is built in a bowl with no natural escape for water. Floods in 1629 left the city underwater for 4 years.
XEmk8 TIL In 2004 actor Paul Walker secretly purchased a $10,000 engagement ring for a U.S. military veteran. Paul was at a jewelry store & overheard a couple talking about a ring they loved but that was too expensive. Paul quietly put the ring on his tab and walked out of the door.
OGBKL TIL that some fish can make their own booze (alcohol) when they are oxygen deprived...
E1D17 TIL both Caller ID and call waiting were invented Dr Shirley Jackson; the first African-American woman to gain a PhD from MIT. Her breakthroughs in theoretical physics & telecommunications also allowed for portable fax, fibre optic cables, and solar cells.