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TIL about Phobos 1, a Soviet space probe launched to study Mars' moon. It shut down before ever reaching Mars because a technician left out a single hyphen in one of the keyed commands. All commands were supposed to be proofread by a computer before being transmitted, but the computer malfunctioned.

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b9B9N TIL a village in Mexico, besieged by crime and corruption, cleaned up by blockading the town from criminals and kicking out the mayor, police, and all political parties. Electioneering is banned. Now, the town is self-governed and policed, offers recycling services, and protects the local forests.
loekV TIL about Scott and Helen Nearing, who bought acreage in the Great Depression and lived off the land until a ski resort saw their property value soar to $6 million. Deciding they'd done nothing to justify the increase, they donated the land to use as a forest, moved to Maine, and lived to age 99.
xV65o Does the drug commonly known as "bath salts" make you particularly crave the taste of human flesh? There's no scientific evidence that it does. But it certainly could lead to a bit of cannibalism as a side effect.
epmQn TIL that the South’s portrayal of the Civil War primarily being about “State Rights” was a narrative that was pushed after the war with the book Lost Cause.
dgXQ TIL a 17-yr-old found Chris Hemsworth’s wallet on a restaurant table in L.A.; he returned it to the actor who gave him back the wallet’s cash plus more. Later on the Ellen Show, the teen was also rewarded $10K cash for his honesty.