› added 2 years ago

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TIL the CIA once called an assassination team the Health Alteration Committee to "incapacitate" an Iraqi Colonel

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dLO7 TIL that mushrooms can create a slight breeze even when the air is calm. They release water vapour, cooling the air and creating a convective current that gets the air moving, carrying spores away from the parent.
NKPM TIL Tolkien’s book “The Two Towers” is ambiguous with regard to the title as any pair from the five towers in the story could plausibly fit the title. Tolkien drew a cover illustration showing the towers he meant but the publisher decided not to use it in order to save money.
9JJD TIL that a bug researcher named Schmidt volunteered to be stung by insects, no matter the pain, and created the “Schmidt Sting Pain Index” even describing the sensations much like a wine taster
ybYV TIL If a baby in a picture has a red eye effect only on one eye the kid might have retinoblastoma (the type of cancer).
dDZ9Z TIL that science still doesn't truly understand how general anesthetics actually work despite several theories, just that they do.