› added 11 years ago

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TIL of Karl von Müller, Captain of the German WWI vessel the SMS Emden, who would allow the passengers of the enemy merchant ships time to gather their belongings and abandon the ship before sinking it.

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6Ebe7 TIL about the man who cut out his own appendix. The only doctor an an expedition to Antarctica, there was only one man and a bottle of whisky for the job.
9wNVB TIL That in 2007 David Letterman became so obsessed with the Michael Martin Murphey song "Wildfire", discussing and dissecting the lyrics with Paul Schaffer among other things, that it culminated in the then 62 year old Murphey being invited to perform the song on "Late Night".
JYayj TIL Bill Gates, since 2007, has given away 48% of his net worth (roughly $28 billion dollars), which has helped save 6 million lives.
oRPNo TIL there can be a >135f differential between the Antarctic air temperature and the incubation temperature of emperor penguin eggs. Male emperor penguins incubate the eggs over the winter, fasting for 4 months, holding them between their feet and a super insulated down pouch until they hatch.
Z8Xk4 TIL in anatomy, the atlas (C1) is the most superior (first) cervical vertebra of the spine. It is named for the Atlas of Greek mythology, because it supports the globe of the head which is the skull. The atlas is the topmost vertebra and with the axis forms the joint connecting the skull and spine.