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TIL in ancient Sri Lanka, they used winds driven by the yearly monsoons to power some of the first steel-making furnaces to produce what's called Wootz Steel.

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1aEj7 TIL The USS William D. Porter was the only vessel in US Navy history to have its entire crew placed under arrest after accidentally firing a live torpedo at a vessel carrying the President of the United States and the Secretary of State
QNVKX TIL that in the late 1600s, a pirate named Henry Every led the most profitable pirate raid of all time, stealing £600,000 in precious metals and jewels (worth around $141 million today) from a convoy belonging to the Mughal Empire. This led to the first worldwide manhunt. He was never found.
rRkKM TIL The Mandarinfish is one of only two species in the world which can produce its own blue coloring. Other animals that appear to be blue such as peacocks, don’t actually produce a blue pigment, they have colorless cells which reflect light to make it appear blue.
ZewQ TIL During the Stonewall Riots, the rioters responded to the arrival of the tactical riot squad by forming Rockette style kick-lines, and shouting to the tune of Howdy Doody “We are the Stonewall girls/ We wear our hair in curls/ We don’t wear underwear/ We show our pubic hairs.”
69kl TIL there is an Iraqi version of “Punk’d” where they plant fake bombs in celebrity’s cars.