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TIL of Ham, the chimp who was the first hominid in space, trained by NASA to operate a capsule in space. His trainer described the moment he was recovered from his capsule following the project – “I have never seen such terror on a chimp’s face”

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YdDr TIL that during World War II, the British Government covered the Taj Mahal with Bamboo scaffoldings to protect it from German Bombers. This was done again during 1965 and 1971, when India were involved in conflicts with Pakistan.
vNxL TIL that there is a surviving fantasy novel written in the 2nd century AD in Roman Syria that features explorers flying to the moon, a first encounter with aliens, interplanetary war between imperialistic celestial kingdoms, and the discovery of a continent across the ocean
Z6ZY TIL one of Frank Lloyd Wright’s apprentices designed a building that was declared historic only twenty years after it was built: Thorncrown Chapel in Arkansas.
xV6K0 NASA’s Mars Climate Orbiter burned up in the Martian atmosphere because engineers failed to convert units from English to metric.
aw44N TIL Great white sharks do not survive in captivity due to depression and refusing to be fed by humans, leading them to die of starvation. There are currently many theories on why this is. The current record for a Great White in captivity is only 44 days.