› added 10 years ago

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TIL the ancient Greeks used the electrogenic properties of electric rays to numb the pain of childbirth and operations.

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MPyb TIL a Roman soldier who survived the three of Rome’s greatest defeats at Ticinus, Trasimene, and Cannae would go on to lead the army that defeated Hannibal. We know him as Scipio Africanus.
yP8v TIL of the Brabham formula 1 fan car. Fans were used to suck air out from under the car. Air-tight ‘hover-car like’ skirts allowed the fans to develop negative pressure beneath the chassis. This effectively allowed the car to 'stick to the road’. It won its only race before being banned.
69YPX TIL that the sun is extremely loud
eAy4 TIL when racial segregation was ruled unconstitutional, Governor Orval Faubus ordered the Arkansas National Guard to “Preserve the Peace” by blocking black students. President Dwight D. Eisenhower reacted by federalizing Arkansas National Guard assuming control to then protect the black students
PGkO TIL Derek Amato is one of just 30 “acquired savants” worldwide. After been taken to hospital with a serious concussion from a diving accident, he sat down at a piano and discovered he was a musical genius.