› added 10 years ago

82

TIL that the Hubble Telescope’s mirrors are ground so precisely that if they were scaled up to be the size of Earth, the largest bump would be 6 inches tall.

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kQAd TIL Early toxicity tests of Penicillin were performed on live mice. Had the tests been run on the other animals at hand (guinea pigs), we might not be using the antibiotic today, because Penicillin is toxic to guinea pigs.
K4na TIL that every part of a dandelion is edible. The leaves and buds can be eaten as greens, the flowers can be made into wine, and the roots can be roasted and ground to make “coffee.”
wo66o TIL ecologists once thought Beaver dam-building was an amazing feat of planning, indicative of the high intellect. This was tested when a recording of running water was played in a field near a beaver pond. Although on dry land, the beaver covered the tape player with branches and mud.
OG8De TIL in 1981 American Airlines offered a "lifetime unlimited AAirpass" for a lifetime of free first class flights for $250k. You could get an additional lifetime pass for a companion for an extra $150k. Two of their most frequent fliers cost the airline $1m a year and flew over 30m miles.
80jX TIL the first commercially successful typewriter was built by an arms manufacturer and looked like a sewing machine