› added 6 years ago

107

TIL that Ernest Hemingway lived through anthrax, malaria, pneumonia, dysentery, skin cancer, hepatitis, anemia, diabetes, high blood pressure, two plane crashes, a ruptured kidney, a ruptured spleen, a ruptured liver, a crushed vertebra, and a fractured skull.

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1aoE4 TIL although Mt. Everest boasts the highest altitude above sea level, and Mauna Kea is the tallest mountain from base to peak, the summit of Ecuador's Mt. Chimborazo is over 6,800 feet farther from the center of the Earth than Everest's due to centrifugal bulging
pVKb TIL in 2011, two Nepali men climbed Mount Everest and then proceeded to paraglide off of the summit, landing 35 km away. They then hiked and kayaked to the Bay of Bengal, winning the pair National Geographic Adventurers of the Year.
xV7P1 TIL Sigmund Freud's books were burned by the Nazis he said, "What progress we are making. In the Middle Ages they would have burned me. Now, they are content with burning my books."
kJ1Ee TIL that during the 'leech craze' of the 1800s, leech collectors (who were usually women) would wade into ponds with their skirts raised to attract the leeches to their bare legs. Some used animals—such as horses that were too old to work—instead of their own bodies to catch the leeches
ep0Pn TIL no law, written rule, or regulation specifies who may lie in state; use of the Rotunda is controlled by concurrent action of the House and Senate. Any person who has rendered distinguished service to the nation may lie in state if the family so wishes and Congress approves.