› added 12 years ago

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TIL When the French Navy ceased using Morse code on January 31, 1997, the final message transmitted was “Calling all. This is our last cry before our eternal silence.”

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kgl1 TIL Britain became an island after the English channel was carved out from 2 megafloods caused by the meting of a large ice sheet that covered Britain and Scandinavia 450,000 years ago.
6d8W TIL after the Nazi concentration camps were liberated, homosexuals still weren’t considered victims and were explicitly excluded from reparations.
GG5G TIL for whatever reason, a German WW2 submarine captain decided not to call the trained technician and tried to operate the complex flush system himself after he had used the lavatory. He flooded the boat, forcing it to surface, where it was promptly spotted by the enemy and bombed out of the water.
aJWJ TIL: Dionysus, the son of Zeus, was: born of a virgin on the 25th December in a manger; performed miracles including turning water into wine; was referred to as the “saviour” and “king of kings”; and was killed and rose from the dead after three days to ascend to heaven; 1,000 years before Christ.
yDKw TIL the Nat Sherman tobacco company introduced plastic tipped cigars to the industry. While the government never granted them a desired patent on the idea, they bluffed away any competitors for 32 years by putting “Patent Pending” on the packaging.