› added 5 years ago

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TIL that NASA lost the Mars Climate Orbiter spacecraft due to the lack of conversion of some data to metric system.

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via reddit.com

gEx9 TIL the phrase “Parthian Shot” refers to a military tactic of the ancient Parthians who would retreat at full gallop, turn around and fire a long bow at their enemies. There is actually controversy among etymologists as to whether “Parting Shot” is derived from this term.
gN0y TIL a girl who had half of her brain removed at age 8 grew up to earn a Master’s degree and become a speech pathologist
6EE9Z TIL at the beginning of his performance at Carnegie Hall, Andy Kaufman invited his “grandmother” to watch the show from a chair he had placed at the side of the stage. At the end of the show, she stood up, took her mask off and revealed that she was actually comedian Robin Williams in disguise.
v1l7j TIL of Dondurma, a Turkish variant of ice cream typically sold from carts, where the vendor deliberately pranks the customer before serving the actual cone
D1JAY TIL that the cinematographer for the music video of REM’s “The One I Love” was chef Alton Brown. Reportedly, between takes he would watch cooking shows and thought he could do better.