› added 11 years ago

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TIL, that ancient sloths were as big as rhinos. They were only exceeded in size by mammoths in other land mammals. There eventual extinction was due to human hunters.

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4k61J TIL that scientists not only dare cut trees by looking at their growth rings, but also historically harvested timber. For example, if you know when a church was built, you can look at the wood beams in it to learn about historic weather and woods management practices.
aNyN TIL that if a dead body goes undiscovered long enough for skin-slip to start and there’s no one to identify the body, forensics can cut the skin around your wrist, slip the skin off, and wear it like a glove in order to get the fingerprints.
4XyYR TIL the US actually made some attempts to use the metric system
XEwOP TIL Christopher Lee was in involved in numerous metal albums for the last ten years of his life
4LKJ TIL that in 1983 a skull fragment was found in a bog in England and was reported to the authorities. They then pulled in a man suspected of murdering his wife who confessed to the act. The fragment was found to have belonged to a woman that died in 250 CE and the man was still tried and convicted.