› added 5 months ago

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TIL: On February 13 1997, about five million Legos were lost at sea when a rogue wave tipped a massive cargo ship dubbed the Tokio Express. Ironically, many of the kits were sea creature themed. The event, known as the Great Lego Spill, is the worst toy-related environmental disaster of all time.

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oBJaA TIL that the Mexican government once opened fire on peaceful protestors. An estimated 300-400 civilians laid dead in the streets. In 2000, official government documents were released that showed the government employed snipers dressed as protestors to provoke the officers into shooting.
wLDNP TIL that the Mayan people constructed the temples in a way that a handclap at the base of the temple produces an echo that sounds like the call of the sacred Quetzal bird. For them the bird was a messenger of the gods.
Z8KJQ TIL that in 1944, Lucien Carr, a member of the group that would become known as the Beat Poets, stabbed his former Boy Scout leader to death after being stalked by him for years. Several soon-to-be well-known writers helped Carr cover up the crime, including William S. Burroughs and Jack Kerouac.
m0Bv TIL that Monty Python member Graham Chapman’s final words were reported to be “Sorry for saying fuck” to a nurse who accidentally stuck a needle in his arm shortly before he died.
6EAPJ TIL in the 1960's the Sugar Industry funded and selectively picked skewed studies that helped blame saturated fat with causing heart disease instead of sugar