› added 10 years ago

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TIL that the straight, wide boulevards of Paris were designed such that artillery could easily fire on rioting crowds.

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epMBJ TIL that the first documented prototype of a "flying car" was created in 1917 by inventor Glenn Curtiss, known as the “Hammond Flying Car.” This innovative vehicle featured folding wings for transitioning between flying and driving.
NxgQ TIL: in 1952 claims smoking causes cancer caused Kent cigarettes to come out with an asbestos filter to protect its smokers
ANJv4 TIL of the Waluigi Effect, a phenomenon in which Large Language Models, such as Chat GPT, goes rogue and produces results opposite the designed intent, named after the character from the 'Mario' series
EgJXw TIL after his journey from Japan in 1614, English sailor John Saris returned home with 'Japanese erotic art'. The incident ended his career as a merchant.
epOR6 TIL Soviet officer Nikolai Kuznetsov, who spoke perfect German, penetrated German lines by posing as a German officer. He heard the first report of Operation Long Jump existing from a drunk SS officer (Nazi plan to kill/kidnap Stalin, Churchill & FDR at the Tehran conference). Soviets ended the plot