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TIL Katana produced during Japans feudal period are far superior to any other sword to come out of the country at any other time.

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GRy1 TIL in 1968 a US Army Batallion raped, maimed, and killed over 350 unarmed Vietnamese civilians, mostly women and children. Of the 26 soldiers charged, only one was convicted and only served 3.5 years in house arrest.
4Xaea TIL In 1996, the Vancouver Aquarium became the first in the world to pledge to never again capture a wild whale or dolphin. Its first killer whale was captured in 1964, making it the first in the world to study orcas under human care
a14Z TIL Don Lapre, the man that became famous with his 1990s infomercials about placing tiny classified ads in newspapers and getting rich, was charged in 2011 with 41 counts of conspiracy, mail fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering and committed suicide in custody.
R5gx9 TIL that the origin of the English word ‘cat’ is coming from the Late Latin word cattus, cata, catta. “Cattus” was first used at the beginning of the 6th century and is derived from an Egyptian precursor of Coptic šau, “tomcat”.
yVdkl TIL that having a small amount of insulation on a cylinder (like a pipe or water heater) can actually make it lose heat faster than if it were entirely uninsulated. This is known as the critical thickness of insulation. Having more than the critical thickness makes the heat transfer rate go down.