› added 10 years ago

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TIL that economists have discovered that insider knowledge of top-secret CIA coups has been used to make huge financial profits

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oRVyr TIL the raising of the American Flag on Iwo Jima was not a planned thing, and was also makeshift. They used a drain pipe that the Japanese used to catch rain water in trenches. This was also the first time an American Flag was raised on Japanese soil in WW2.
OJkg TIL the Soviet Union had a water computer created in 1928 that was used until the 1980s.
Br8kr TIL The song "Rooster" by Alice In Chains (probably their most famous song) wasn't written by lead singer Layne Staley, but by Jerry Cantrell, the bands guitarist. The title refers to his Father's childhood nickname and the song details his Father's traumatic time in the Vietnam War
5KPQ TIL Tommy Wiseau used a 35mm film camera and an HD video camera side-by-side when shooting The Room because he didn’t know which format was best and couldn’t choose one.
lo941 TIL a coin flip actually has a 51/49 probability of landing heads or tails -- favoring the side facing up when flipped. If you spin a US penny on its side, however, it has an 80% chance of landing tails up.