› added 4 years ago

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TIL about Götz von Berlichingen, also known as Götz of the Iron Hand, who lost his right hand to cannon fire in 1504 and had it replaced with a mechanical iron prosthetic. Götz is remembered for his response to an enemy's order to surrender: “Tell him he can kiss my ass."

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pYOxZ Today I learned of the voiceless labial–velar implosive, the rarest sound to appear in any language. The sound, described as pronouncing a k and p at the same time while sucking in air instead of pushing it out, is found only in the Central dialect of the Igbo language.
QGO6 TIL that in Japan, prisoners on death row are not told when they will be executed until a few hours before they are hanged, and their families are not notified until after they are dead.
9YOOp TIL that the future King Henry V of England took an arrow in the face at the Battle of Shrewsbury (1403), fighting beside his father when he was only 16 years old. Despite the terrible wound, he kept fighting and later recovered. Turns out he was a badass long before invading France.
xVP81 TIL that people with depression may have a more realistic view of the world. This theory is called Depressive Realism.
4X6O5 TIL of Salem Poor, a slave who purchased his freedom, and fought in the battle of bunker hill. His actions earned him the praise of 14 officers who called him "a brave and gallant soldier"