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TIL: Battle of Blair Mountain: The largest labor uprising in America. A five day battle between 10,000 miners and 3,000 lawmen and strike breakers

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69vpl TIL that when scientist think they have found a new insect species, they examine its penis; there is such variety between insect penises that it’s a sure fire way of identifying a new species
1a84O TIL the Rod of Asclepius, a snake winding around a stick and international symbol of medicine, represents the treatment for the bloodworm Dracunculus. This worm travels through the blood and eats its way to the skin: treatment involves wrapping the worm around a wooden stick and pulling it out.
YyYd TIL: PETA is requesting a bar in Britain change its name from “Ye olde fighting cock” to “Ye olde clever cock” to better portray chickens as the “intelligent, sensitive and social animals they are”
6Eopw TIL Aniseed ball candies were used as timing devices for underwater mines during WWII, as each had precisely the same spherical shape and consistently dissolved in water after 35 minutes, leaving the saboteur time to escape
npDY TIL that Sunandha Kumariratana, queen of Thailand, drowned as her subjects looked on, because they were forbidden to touch her.