› added 12 years ago

228

TIL there is a man in NYC who digs through the cracks in sidewalks in search of gold and diamonds, making as much as $819 in six days.

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kb0e TIL that the number of planets in the observable universe outnumber the sum of all sounds, words, and noises uttered by every human who has ever lived.
e6P6 TIL that during World War II in Australia, there was a dog whose hearing was so acute that it could warn airforce personnel of incoming Japanese planes 20 minutes before they arrived, and before they showed up on radar. “Gunner” could also differentiate the sounds of allied and enemy aircraft.
XE4VR TIL British spymaster Sir Mansfield Smith-Cumming, the first head of the MI6 and the inspiration of James Bond's M, started the practice of using semen as invisible ink during WWI. It worked well, until they realised that the letters smelled awful when received.
R7jj7 TIL the font in the intro to Stranger Things is called ITC Benguiat, and it is an instrumental part of the 1980s feel of the show
78L1O TIL about the device ADE 651, which was described by its maker, ATSC, as being powered through the user's static electricity to detect explosives and drugs thanks to "programmed substance detection cards". It was bought in Iraq, Pakistan and the USA before the fraud was discovered