› added 7 years ago

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TIL about renowned British military surgeon James Barry, a pioneer in the medical field with a career spanning over 50 years. After his death in 1865 the nurse prepping his body for burial noted female anatomy and stretch marks from pregnancy. Barry had been born a woman named Margaret Ann Bulkley.

vg9D TIL that at the Southern Pole of Inaccesability, which is far more remote and difficult to reach than the geographical Southern Pole, is an abandoned Soviet Union research centre buried under the snow. Inside there is a golden book allowed to be signed by visitors who survive the journey.
mVmv TIL in WWII, the BBC asked for holiday pictures and snaps of France ostensibly for an “exhibition” when actually, they were going to be used by the Allies to create detailed maps of the Normandy beaches so that they could plan for the Battle of Normandy.
kPn1 TIL Irena Sendlar, the “Oskar Schindler,” smuggled 2500 Jewish infants out of the Warsaw Ghetto during WW2. When caught by the Nazis she had her limbs broken and was beaten. When nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize she lost to Al Gore, who made a PowerPoint slideshow on global warming.
JYGdm TIL Mel Gibson and Liam Neeson were largely considered to play James Bond in the movie "Goldeneye". Neeson turned it down because he wasn't interested in action films at the time and Gibson was too busy with his project "Braveheart" despite being recommended by Sean Connery.
rRbMW TIL that stray dogs in Russia have taught themselves to use subway to commute from one stop to another in search of food. This gives a peek into their evolution side, where they are getting smarter everyday because of the strive to survive in the unnatural environment cities provide.