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TIL Canadian engineers wear a steel ring on their little finger as a reminder of the obligations and ethics of the profession after the same bridge collapsed twice in 1907

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vwl4 TIL Spring gets 30 seconds shorter every year due to a wobble in the Earth’s axis. Astronomer L. Gerstman: “The shift in the time of the vernal equinox becomes more apparent. Spring will be shortest in the year 8680, (88.5 days), or 4 days shorter than this year’s.” After that it will lengthen again
EgQ8p TIL the Burr Arch Truss was a bridge design patented by Theodore Burr in 1817 and used mostly for covered bridges. Theodore Burr was first cousins with former U.S. Vice President Aaron Burr.
DXge TIL there was a computer worm that would gain access to Windows XP systems, download a patch from Microsoft to close the vulnerability that it used to infect the system, attempt to delete the infamous Blaster worm (if present) from the system, then delete itself.
XE4kP TIL that Idaho is the only State in America named through a hoax. In 1860, George M. Willing, presented the name Idaho, claiming it derived from the phrase "Gem of the mountains." When in fact it means nothing.
D1vYv TIL pygmy seahorses are tiny fish that are nearly indistinguishable from their habitats due to their size and extreme camouflage. They are so well camouflaged that Bargibant’s pygmy seahorse was only discovered after a host gorgonian was collected and observed by marine biologist George Bargibant.