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174

TIL of Rena Kanokogi, a judo practitioner who, disguised as a man, won a gold medal at the 1959 YMCA judo tournament only to have to return it upon the revelation of her gender. 50 years later, she finally got the medal back.

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rRdlx TIL traditional Japanese woodworking didn't use nails or glue, instead they used interlocking joints to connect the wood
a8OGA TIL when Coney Island's Steeplechase amusement park burned down in 1907 the park's owner placed a sign the next day that read "On this site will be built a bigger, better, Steeplechase Park. Admission to the burning ruins — Ten cents"
DGbp TIL that “crushable concrete” is a safety feature at many airports. The surface deforms under the weight of an aircraft and slows it down in a similar way to sand filled runaway truck ramps.
eOlD TIL there is controversy over whether Cinderella’s shoes are made of glass or of squirrel leather, the two words being homophones in French (vair/verre)
ne9KY TIL the Japanese work philosophy of “kaizen”, where people constantly seek to find ways to improve methods instead of just doing it the same way