› added 12 years ago

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TIL that the KGB ran a disinformation campaign focused on spreading the rumor that the USA had invented and spread AIDS as part of a biological weapons program

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v15Bj TIL that the quarantine flag, also called the “Yellow Jack”, is an international signal flag that was last flown during the 2002-03 SARS outbreak. The flag is flown from a ship that is either arriving in port with known serious health problems or that has been placed under quarantine.
x5oD TIL that there are fridges full of free beer scattered throughout Europe that will only open for Canadians.
E1M17 TIL that criminals in ancient Athens were most commonly executed via crucifixion ("the board"), but the government allowed the condemned to drink hemlock instead if they personally purchased the poison
p1NA TIL: Hacker, Kevin Mitnick, spent eight months in solitary confinement after law enforcement officials convinced a judge that he had the ability to “start a nuclear war by whistling into a pay phone.”
QJZnd TIL that Mad Magazine writer Dick DeBartolo was on the staff of game show Match Game. When it was cancelled DeBartolo started writing silly and suggestive questions - which led to improved ratings and a reversal of the decision to cancel the show