› added 12 years ago

2093

TIL that, when a pope dies, it is tradition to strike him three times on the head with a silver hammer to ensure he is actually dead.

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via reddit.com

ea6n TIL the scientific name for the western lowland gorilla is “gorilla gorilla gorilla”
6EMPQ TIL the chainsaw was invented to help during difficult childbirth; it would be used to cut away parts of the pelvis to make space for the baby.
XELRE TIL Emperor Meiji of Japan (1852-1912) was the last Japanese emperor to wear a full beard
10M4 TIL that in 1989 a scuba diver was sucked up by an intake pipe of a nuclear power plant, dragged over 1,600 feet, and deposited in one of the reactor cooling ponds. He lived.
9DDG TIL - NASA posted sounds made in space near different planets in 2007. They have been appropriately named “Spooky Space Sounds.” You can listen here.