› added 11 years ago

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TIL that the fastest (english) typist in the world could maintain 150 words per minute with a max speed of 212 wpm. She also failed her high school typing class.

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8axaP TIL it is possible to distinguish the parts of Berlin that were formerly West and East from the space: “East” Berlin uses sodium vapor lamps which produce a yellow color, whilst “West” Berlin uses fluorescent lamps produce a white color.
ne159 Today I learned that part of the reason Pythagoras hated beans so much was the belief that beans contained the souls of dead people. Hence, when you farted, you farted the souls of your dead ancestors.
dDl8K TIL that the long running radio program about a Black maid named Beulah was originally voiced by a white man. The character was in several radio programs before finally landing her own series, which later transitioned to television.
AKJw TIL that Manhattan Project mathematician Richard Hamming was asked to check some arithmetic by a fellow researcher. Hamming planned to give it to a subordinate until he realized it was a set of calculations to see if the nuclear detonation would ignite the entire Earth’s atmosphere.
Wea8 TIL squirrels were voracious pests in colonial America. Bounties were imposed to reduce populations and some colonies even accepted squirrel scalps as payment for taxes. Colonists became such marksmen from shooting squirrels, they later devastated the ranks of British soldiers during the revolution.