› added 6 years ago

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TIL that naked mole rats can survive 18 minutes without oxygen and suffer no lasting effects. They achieve this feat by switching their metabolism to use fructose, instead of glucose, something typically only done by plants.

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lok1r TIL that the name "IPod was inspired by "2001: A Space Odyssey"
WkPxd TIL of the Massacre of Catharism: the French Catholic Church burned Cathars at the stake for believing that there were 2 Gods of Good and Evil, and that this world is a prison for our souls made by the Evil God
4kv8X TIL chicken noodle soup has actual healing properties. After consuming, white blood cells behave differently and create an anti-inflammatory response that can help with upper respiratory issues (ie: the common cold)
nWGpb TIL that when F1 driver Pedro Rodriguez won the 1967 South African Grand Prix, becoming the first ever Mexican driver to win an F1 race, the organizers didn't have the Mexican anthem, and instead played the Mexican hat dance. After that, Rodriguez always traveled with a record of the anthem with him
lBkK TIL that during the siege of Jerusalem in 1917, the British started to airdrop cigarettes filled with large doses of Opium, hoping that the Ottomans would be too stoned to fight. It worked.