› added 5 years ago

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TIL of the Tarantula Hawk, a giant member of the wasp family whose sting is described as an "immediate, excruciating, unrelenting pain that simply shuts down one's ability to do anything, except scream. Mental discipline simply does not work in these situations." It's the state insect of New Mexico.

Q6yk TIL: After WW2 the Japanese Admiral who invented the idea of kamikaze pilots committed ritual suicide, seppuku, as an apology. After cutting through his abdomen he refused the customary beheading, instead slowly dying over several hours.
OoBVR TIL that Science says booger-eating and nose-picking is healthy. It turns out that snot is actually full of bacteria that helps your teeth, immune system, and overall health.
5YmNP TIL of Steven Phillips, a man who spent 24 years in prison for a crime he did not commit. When he was released in 2008, he received $6 million in compensation. Then, his ex-wife, who divorced him while he was in prison, sued to get part of the compensation. She did not receive a penny.
Lk9Rv TIL that Schrödinger's cat paradox was originally intended to ridicule quantum superposition. Schrödinger was proven incorrect and his thought experiment is now used to explain superposition rather than criticise it.
GoP4 TIL that Weird Al Yankovic is a vegan, and when asked how he can justify playing at the Great American Rib Cookoff, he responded “The same way I can rationalize playing at a college even though I’m not a student anymore.”