› added 1 year ago

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TIL about "Edison's Conquest of Mars" - an 1898 novel where Thomas Edison kicked alien ass in an unauthorized sequel to "The War of the Worlds." Among its MANY sci-fi inventions: First use of spacesuits, alien abductions, space wars, asteroid mining, and aliens building the Pyramids.

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via reddit.com

7rPnM TIL the phrase 'Knock on Wood' derives from the pagan belief that malevolent spirits inhabited wood, and that if you expressed a hope for the future you should touch, or knock on, wood to prevent the spirits from hearing and presumably preventing your hopes from coming true.
WLyN TIL the first ingredients listed on a package of goldfish are “Smiles”
d8R6E TIL a 40 acre Montana fire was caused by a hawk landing on power lines while clutching a large snake. The wriggling snake touched a second power line, completing the circuit and electrocuting both animals with up to 700,000 volts.
04jA TIL there is a taste receptor cell in your urethra that can sense bitter.
MAYB TIL London 2012 was the first Olympic Games ever to be completed without a single fatality in construction. Over 60 were killed in the construction of the Sochi games