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TIL the first military personnel to be made aware of the 9/11 hijackings were taking part in a preparation exercise. As a result, they weren't sure if the information was authentic.

Read more defense.gov

via reddit.com

16wBP TIL in Ancient Egypt people with dwarfism were highly respected and held high social status due to Egyptians viewing such people as having celestial gifts. In fact, during the 1st Dynasty, dwarfs directly served and worked with the king and royal household and were buried in subsidiary tombs.
GYRdE TIL that the longest filibuster in history was conducted by Strom Thurmond at over 24 hours, in an attempt to stop a bill that would give the constitutional rights to millions of African Americans. After he died, it came out that he had secretly had a black daughter.
NX7r8 TIL that the Moon emits a constant tail of sodium. When small meteorites hit the surface of the Moon, the sodium from the dust that is emitted is picked up by the solar wind and blown away in a specific direction.
p4d8 TIL when a new queen bee is available, the old queen is enclosed in a ball of bees until she overheats and dies. Also known as “cuddle death”.
166ld TIL about the Baghdad Batteries. In 1938 twelve jars with copper cylinders and iron rods were found in Iraq. The jars when combined with grape juice produce approximately 1 volt of electricity. It is hypothesized these were the first batteries ever created, over two thousand years ago.