› added 2 years ago

61

TIL: An Indian mathematician identified Mt. Everest as the world's highest peak in 1852. Using trigonometry, he calculated its height to be 29,000 ft. In 2020, the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Nepal determined the actual height to be 29,031 ft - a difference of 31 ft from the 1852 estimate.

oRooR TIL The Hippopotamus produces its own sunscreen through a viscous secretion across the skin, originating from subdermal glands. This secretion starts clear, within minutes polymerizing to a red, then brown color - it also has antimicrobial properties.
DQxAP TIL that in 1944 the US Army and Navy created a simulated assault on Japanese position in the center of the LA Coliseum for 250k spectators as a move to boost war-production morale and productivity
76Yp TIL A cat, named Pwditat, approached the family dog Terfel and seemed to sense that he couldn’t see. Using her paws, she coaxed him out of his basket that he had been afraid to leave and led him out into the garden. Today, the unlikely pair is inseparable as she serves as Terfel’s seeing-eye cat.
E1lp TIL that Mark Calaway aka The Undertaker established The Zeus Compton Calaway Save the Animals fund to help pay for lifesaving treatments for large-breed dogs.
a8MRZ TIL that Paul Thomas Anderson originally wanted the 1997 film "Boogie Nights" to be over three hours long and be rated NC-17. However the film's producers said that the film had to be either under three hours or rated R. Anderson chose the latter even though the film runs at 155 minutes.