› added 9 months ago

39

TIL that in 1970 Kinks lead singer Ray Davies had to fly from America to the UK just to re-record 2 words of the song Lola. The lyrics originally contained the words Coca-Cola and using a brand name meant it was banned by the BBC. The words were changed to cherry cola.

Read more ultimateclassicrock.com

via reddit.com

8aQrG TIL during the construction of the Metro Red Line subway in Los Angeles, 2,000 fossils were discovered, some as old as 16.5 million years old. These included 39 species of extinct marine fish that had never before been discovered.
y6pJ TIL that victorious Romans would have a slave to whisper in their ear “you are just a man” as they proceeded though the cheering crowds, to stop their egos transcending.
QNDZX TIL about Captain Richard J. Flaherty AKA “The Giant Killer”, one of the smallest men to ever serve in the military at 4’ 9” / 97lbs. He earned the Silver Star, Bronze Star, Purple Heart (1OLC), Air Medal, Army Commendation Medal, Combat Infantryman’s Badge and Parachutist Badge in the Vietnam War.
dD4Qd TIL that masers (laser-like directed energy weapons using microwave radiation instead of visible light) actually predate lasers by several years, and in fact some of the earliest lasers were even referred to as "optical masers"
dbvZ TIL that a man named Armand Hammer coincidentally ended up on the board of directors for Arm & Hammer