› added 6 years ago

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TIL about Pierre Andre Latreille, a French entomologist who was meant to be executed during the French revolution, but was released after discovering a rare beetle species (Necrobia ruficollis) in his prison cell.

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j6R4a TIL that after the Portuguese defeat in the Siege of Tangier (1437, against Morocco), Prince Ferdinand was held hostage until Portugal returned the city of Ceuta to Morocco. The Portuguese King never did that, despite his brother's pleas, and Ferdinand died in captivity, in 1443.
OG6jX TIL There have not yet been any major medical emergencies in space, but astronauts are trained to deal with them. ISS astronauts have developed a way to perform CPR in zero gravity by bracing their legs on the ceiling while pushing down on the patient on the floor below
Z8kv TIL that Mister Rogers was awarded 40 honorary degrees throughout his career as an entertainer and educator.
ADWM4 TIL that many decorative glass crystal products (e.g. decanters, wine glasses, etc.) contain lead at significant enough levels that liquids stored in them for more than a few hours are no longer safe to drink (or any length of time for children).
NVp8 TIL there was a project that challenged people to make a “Earth Sandwich” by placing pieces of bread in antipodal fashion on the earth (completely opposite of each other on the planet) For the first one, a baguette was placed in Spain, and another in New Zealand.