› added 6 years ago

224

A shocking number of people view cyclists as less than human — even likening them to insects — and that those “dehumanizing” attitudes are connected with aggressive driving targeted at people on bikes, according to a new study.

M77vK TIL Prior to Uncle Sam, the British character Brother Jonathon symbolized the independent American people after the Revolutionary War. However, Brother Jonathon faded into the figure of Uncle Sam whose likeness to Lincoln and being made in America likely contributed to his longevity.
ePyg TIL British naval submarines have for years flown the jolly roger to honor submarine tradition.
RD1 TIL Doctor Seuss’s first book took 27 publisher rejections before it finally found a taker, Chicken Soup for the Soul was passed on by over 100, A Time to Kill by 26, and George Orwell was told Animal Farm would never sell because “it is impossible to sell animal stories in the U.S.”
e0mmb TIL that the practice of playing music for callers on hold began with a faulty phone line connection. A loose wire touching the steel frame of an office building caused it to act as a giant radio receiver, allowing callers to hear music from local radio stations while they waited on hold.
LkjyV TIL that, contrary to popular belief, friction is not the primary cause of spacecraft heating up on re-entry. Rather, the heat comes from the air in front of the craft being highly compressed. This is also why the leading edges get the hottest.