› added 6 years ago

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TIL of Märket, a tiny island divided by the finnish-swedish border. When the finns inadvertedly built a lighthouse on the wrong side of the border, the swedes agreed to trade it for an equal spot of land on the other side, causing the border to zig-zag.

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VMLyQ TIL it is largely a myth that the Library of Alexandria was destroyed in a fire. Most of the collection had records elsewhere in the world. The Library of Alexandria was largely brought down by dwindling membership over many centuries. By the time it was destroyed, no books were housed there.
nnrd TIL the “Spanish Flu” was so called because during WWI the warring countries censored the news of the plague to maintain morale while neutral Spanish didn’t.
nW7YP TIL a mountain "jumped" almost 15 inches (38cm) during an earthquake
VMVWB Today I learned about Tea Parties
kJa7W TIL of anchorites, medieval Christian ascetics who were walled into a cell ("anchorhold") attached to a church for their entire adult lives. Through small windows, they received sustenance, disposed of waste, and provided spiritual guidance to the public.