› added 6 years ago

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TIL that the Babylonians actually discovered Trigonometry about 1,500 years before the Greeks. Not only were their tables more accurate because of their base-60 numerical system (which made thirds more accurate), but their approach using ratios is something relatively novel to us, today.

Read more telegraph.co.uk

via reddit.com

rrL1 TIL of John Laufer, the man who stopped Mall Spree Killer Sylvia Seegrist. He did not know that she was shooting real bullets and simply walked up to her and grabbed the gun from her as it was annoying. He thought it was a fake gun it was a Halloween prank.
dD5mE TIL of Sun Yaoting, the last eunuch of China who had his penis and testicles removed at the age of eight. Less than two years before China abolish the monarchy.
KYNA6 TIL that election silence is a thing in many countries around the world. There is a time period before the election that the media and campaigns must stop talking about the election.
0wkZ1 TIL the London underground system, once advertised as a cool escape from hot weather, has been slowly heating up due to dissipated heat from trains braking being captured and retained by surrounding clay, a natural insulator.
6Edpl TIL that actor Michael Caine originally joined drama class in high school because it was full of girls and he wanted to get laid. He ended up winning two Oscars.