› added 8 years ago

201

TIL of the 1986 Lake Nyos disaster which belched out trapped Carbon Dioxide from its bottom in effervescence suffocating every living animal within a 16 mile radius incl. 1700 villagers and 3500 livestock. The blue lake turned deep red from oxidization and water levels dropped by a meter.

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4X6W5 TIL: Donkey Kong not developed by Nintendo but rather a subcontracting company that also made Sega's Congo Bongo and Zaxxon. They successfully sued after Nintendo use their source code to create Donkey Kong Jr. without them.
e0506 TIL the American flag was designed by a High School Student. Happy Independence Day!
4Xre5 TIL that blink-182 was forced by the American Red Cross to remove a red cross from the artwork for their album "Enema of the State" as it was a violation of the international Geneva Conventions.
loaDa TIL about the saffron crocus flower that is used to make the most valuable spice in the world (by weight)-- saffron. It can take 50,000–75,000 plants to produce 1 pound of saffron.
XkoQ TIL that in Canada, mothers who kill their newborns almost never receive jail time, and the most they can receive is 5 years