› added 8 years ago

203

TIL: The vast Library of Congress (paper) card catalog is abandoned in place, gathering dust in the basement

Read more atlasobscura.com

via ift.tt

69gBY TIL that in 1700, India had the largest GDP in the world including more than all of Western Europe combined.
ZnWQ TIL that because of the decline in bee population, apple farmers in china are now pollinating the trees manually, using a paintbrush.
Oopv1 TIL that in 1921, spiritualists Thomas Lynn Bradford and Ruth Doran decided to test whether it was possible to communicate with the dead. Bradford killed himself by sealing his apartment and turning on his gas stove, and planned to appear as a ghost to Doran after his death. He didn't.
a8DbZ TIL Smokers are 16 more times likely to develop optic neuropathy, a sudden loss of vision, which often leads to permanent blindness.
4X5X5 TIL that the dedication page at the front of published books was originally used as a way for an author to beg a high-influence person for money.