› added 11 years ago

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TIL….about Richard McNair, a prisoner placed in the federal supermax facility in Colorado because he had previously escaped 3 times, including when he successfully mailed himself out of jail in a package.

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4kRrN TIL in 2005 a British Airways 747 (G-BNLG) had an engine flame out and attempted to fly from LAX back to the London Heathrow on 3 engines, it ended up diverting to Manchester Uk instead
1ePD TIL a french mathematician the day before his duel published all his work because he didnt think he would survive. The next day he died at age 20 from a bullet to his gut.
rNErx TIL before the battle of Drepana in the 1st punic war the roman navy commander Claudius Pulcher was told that the sacred chicken refused to eat. Ignoring the bad omen, he said "let's see if they'll drink instead" and threw them into the sea. He lost the battle
KO8w4 TIL that Tsunamis occasionally occur on Lake Michigan - often enough that experts are attempting to develop an early warning system for them. They have been deadly in the past.
KlZE TIL A Canadian genius that specialized in ballistics was designing a super cannon to cheaply shoot objects into orbit. Canada and the United States cancelled the joint project. While devastated that his dream would never be seen, he was approached by another financial backer: Saddam Hussein.