› added 9 years ago

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TIL African giant pouched rats are trained to detect tuberculosis, which is the world’s second most fatal infectious disease. Although they currently are not an accepted standalone diagnostic tool, one rat can evaluate more samples in 10 minutes than a lab technician can evaluate in 1 day.

Read more news.nationalgeographic.com

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nR7P TIL Grizzly bears were so feared and respected by Native Americans that hunting them required a company of 4 to 10 warriors and was done with the same preparation and ceremoniality as intertribal warfare.
7rXnZ TIL the rocket in Jules Verne’s 1865 story From the Earth to the Moon launched from Florida and landed in the Pacific Ocean because of Verne’s calculations. In 1969, Apollo 11 took off from Florida and landed in the Pacific Ocean.
wLMoW TIL Steve Martin and Martin Short both turned down the role of Lloyd in Dumb and Dumber. Originally the Farrelly Brothers didn't know who Jim Carrey was and were only told that he was "The White Guy" on In Living Color.
d8NZZ TIL Canada is one of the oldest continual monarchies in the world. Established in either the 15th or 16th Century, it is older than the British monarchy which took a break between 1649 and 1660.
691lZ TIL that the "bones" you sometimes find in salmon fillets aren't bones at all. They're calcified nerve endings used to sense other salmon.