› added 8 years ago

66

TIL of Jose Mujica, former president of Uruguay and known as “the world’s ‘humblest’ president” due to his austere lifestyle and his donation of around 90 percent of his $12,000 monthly salary

Read more wikipedia.org

via reddit.com

9Ymbm TIL about Operation Pluto, an operation to lay submarine oil pipelines under the English Channel in support of the Allied invasion of Normandy during WWII. The two pipelines, "Bambi" and "Dumbo", carried 180 million imperial gallons of petrol to the Allied Expeditionary Force in North West Europe.
ne5X7 TIL about the business of “Adversary Air Support” in which a contractor has their own fleet of fighter jets that fly against U.S. military fighter pilots, replicating aerial threats from potential enemy nations.
xrvb TIL Knocker Upper , before alarm clockswere affordable or reliable. A knocker-up’s job was to rouse sleeping people so they could get to work on time. They used a truncheon or short, heavy stick to knock on the clients’ doors or a long and light stick to reach windows on higher floors.
Ew6X TIL a chef’s hat, or toque, has 100 folds to represent the 100 ways to cook an egg
5YL1R TIL that Bruce Lee tried to create an American TV show in the 70’s but Warner Brothers stole the idea, created “Kung Fu” and cast David Carradine as the lead. 50 yrs later Bruce Lee’s daughter took her fathers idea and created “The Warrior” for Cinemax.