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To build the world’s biggest telescope, you first need to cast, shape, and polish the world’s biggest mirrors.

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XEKKD TIL in 1967 a three way battle erupted in Laos as Burmese militia, remnants of Chinese Nationalist armies and the Royal Loa Army each attempted to capture a mule train carrying 16 tons of opium. The Loatian forces emerged victorious and later peddled the heroin to US troops in Vietnam.
J1p71 TIL after losing her position in her university's anatomy department in 1938, Rita Levi-Montalcini set up a laboratory in her bedroom and studied the growth of nerve fibers in chicken embryos. This work led to her discovery of nerve growth factor, for which she was awarded a Nobel Prize in 1986.
P9Mg TIL That adult Luna Moths develop without a mouth, their only purpose is to mate within their 7-day lifespan. After which they die of starvation.
VXdZ TIL that the worst industrial accident occured in Texas City, Texas in 1947. It was so powerful that it launched a 2 ton anchor over 2km, leveled 1,000 buildings and destroyed small aircraft flying overheard. It lead to the first class action lawsuit against the U.S. government.
PVRE TIL: Timothy Ray Brown revived a stem cell transplant to treat his acute myeloid leukemia in 2008. Not only did he eliminate his cancer, but he became the first person to ever be cured from HIV.