› added 5 years ago

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TIL about Vickrey auction, a type of sealed-bid auction. Bidders submit written bids without knowing the bid of the other people in the auction. The highest bidder wins, but the price paid is the second-highest bid. This was first described academically by Nobel winner William Vickrey in 1961.

9wByB TIL In 2009, 15-year-old Kimberly Anyadike became the youngest African American woman to fly solo across the U.S., honouring the Tuskegee Airmen along her journey.
Oo0g1 TIL about Saadat Shahr, a small rural community in Iran nicknamed ‘Astronomy Town’ because of the residents’ passion for stargazing. The town clubbed together to pay for an observatory and on special occasions all the lights are cut to improve the view of the night sky.
WOX9 TIL The SR-71 was made of titanium purchased from the Soviet Union through third world countries as they were the only supplier large enough. The SR-71 was used to spy on the Soviet Union for the rest of the cold war.
9Y0Qr TIL that when a jury convicted Jane Wenham of witchcraft in 1712, due to witnesses accusing her of flying on a broomstick and bewitching servants, the sceptical judge refused to execute her and instead sought a royal pardon, noting that there was “no law against flying.”
MylA TIL in the “Rumble in the Jungle” fight, Muhammad Ali allowed George Foreman to fruitlessly strike him in the arms and torso for 8 rounds without fighting back to tire him out, then punched Foreman ten times in a row to knock him out.