› added 11 years ago

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TIL that regardless of what service you get your weather information from, almost all of the data comes from the same place. NOAA has the only nationwide weather radar and operates the only weather satellites in the US. It freely distributes it’s information into the public domain.

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DdbJ TIL carob seeds were used to verify the purity of gold. A solidus (pure gold coin) would equal 24 carob seeds. Any variation indicated impurity. Carat, the measure of purity of gold, is derived from Carob seeds and even today pure gold is called 24 carat.
ney97 TIl that in 1926 Anglo-Irish woman Violet Gibson attempted to assassinate Benito Mussolini. However, the first shot only hit his nose and the gun misfired when the attempted a second. She was released without charge, deported to the Britain and spent the rest of her life in a mental asylum.
e0y55 TIL that the depiction of angels as winged humanoids in robes was just a relatively recent idea. In the Bible, they were described as terrifying odd shapes and stuff. One was a burning wheel with multiple eyes and another was a four-faced being. This was why they would say 'fear not' to a human.
GYb0G TIL that during filming of 1973’s “Superteams”, an ABC show pitting famous athletes against each other, heavyweight champion Joe Frazier nearly drowned during a swimming event. He signed up despite not knowing how to swim.
WkgX TIL there is a website that plays rain and thunderstorm ambiance should you so desire it…