› added 10 years ago

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TIL that punchcards were used to ‘program’ looms to weave elaborate textiles in 1725.

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v1v74 TIL Jay Chandrasekhar from Super Troopers full name is Jayanth Jambulingam Chandrasekhar, which translates literally to " victorious large penis rising moon "
Xx1R TIL the ancient Egyptians believed the ebb and flow of the Nile was caused by the god Atum masturbating to ejaculation. As such, Pharoahs were sometimes required to ceremonially masturbate into the Nile.
rRWL4 TIL the one liner, "Why Do We Drive on Parkways and Park on Driveways?" seems ironic because the terms predate automobiles. Way means path, park means scenic natural space, and drive means short private road.
wLdWW TIL That a petard was a small bomb used in the sixteenth century to blow up walls. So being hoisted by his own petard means he was blown up by his own bomb.
awYny TIL Because the number 8 is considered very lucky in Chinese culture, a Chinese man spent the equivalent of 1 millions RMB to secure a license plate reading '88888' in the hope of increasing his luck, to get pulled over 8 times by cops who thought the plate was a fake.