› added 6 months ago

18

TIL Mork & Mindy was a spin-off based on a season 5 episode of Happy Days, "My Favorite Orkan". This episode helped Robin Williams kickstart his career, and he signed a contract for Mork & Mindy just 4 days later.

QNxRe TIL British army tanks have a pair of eyes painted on them. A Chinese businessman insisted on this when he gave money for a tank during WW1. He said; "No got eyes, how can see? No can see, how can save? No can save, how can chop chop?" The 'Chinese Eye' is now a long standing tradition.
VbN4 TIL of the “Sisyphus Train,” a project currently underway in Nevada meant to recover surplus grid power that can’t be stored very easily. During the day, the excess power is used to drive the train up a hill. At night, the train rolls back down, generating it all back again.
e0gxg TIL that the Berber people of North Africa and the Sami people of northern Scandinavia share a close mitochondrial DNA link. Researchers found that the two groups diverged about 9000 years ago, just after the last ice age.
9wN4r TIL The Nagant M1895 is one of the few revolvers that can successfully use a silencer. This is possible because the ammunition's casing extends over the projectile and the cylinder slides forward when cocked. When fired these elements create a gas seal that prevents gas from venting out the sides.
ROEQ TIL Mozart once conducted an orchestra, at the demands of the crowd, after standing during the performance and shouting that the orchestra had played a wrong note.