› added 8 months ago

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TIL Thomas Jefferson, USA's Third President, developed the first Swivel Chair - and arguably the first modern office chair

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neXrr TIL that ants will refuse “medical” help from their colony if they know they are mortally wounded. Rather than waste the colony’s resources and energy on futile rehabilitation, the wounded ant flails its legs, forcing help to abandon them.
WmKX TIL Danish philosopher Søren Kirkegaard published his works using amusing pseudonyms (perhaps best of all, Hilarius Bookbinder). Everyone in Copenhagen knew that Søren was the author, so at times he added to the title page of a book the scholarly note that it had been “edited by Søren Kierkegaard.”
500Q TIL that it was Freddie Mercury’s dying wish for “Bohemian Rhapsody” to be reissued in order to raise money for AIDS charities. When the song was rereleased in late 1991, it topped the charts, staying at #1 for five weeks for the first time since its debut in 1975.
oR1YY TIL Sperm Whales consume roughly twice as much seafood as all of humanity combined per year. With Sperm Whales (the largest toothed predators) consuming roughly 300 million tonnes per year and humans consuming about 160 million tonnes. (Further sources in comments)
nWvvo TIL that Apollo 13 launched on April 11, 1970 for a moon landing mission. An oxygen tank explosion 2 days later endangered 3 astronauts. Despite the catastrophic accident, NASA engineers worked tirelessly to safely return the crew to Earth by April 17, showcasing NASA's Safety& Innovation commitment