› added 6 years ago

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til paraffin wax was a common waterproofing method for circus tents but changed in 1944 after the Ringling Bros. Fire in Hartford, CT. The paraffin wax ended up accelerating the deadly fire & 1800lbs of hot wax "rained down from the roof"-killing 167 people; injuring 700, mostly women & children.

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Z8XNv TIL that the earth will become inhospitable to life in 2 - 3 billion years as the sun increases in temperature, pushing the habitable Goldilocks zone to Mars or beyond.
l7g8B TIL that Dion Dublin, a former English professional footballer, is also an amateur percussionist, and invented a percussion instrument called "The Dube"
GYQgE TIL: the “selfie stick” was once considered so unnecessary that it was included in a Chindōgu book consisting of 101 Un-Useless Japanese Inventions by Kenji Kawakami. Chindōgu are things that are almost completely useless, but not quite.
oBVkE TIL that most aerosol cans have a little dot painted on the rim that, when aligned with the nozzle, help you get every last drop of the product out before you run out of propellant. There’s a curved straw inside that runs down the edge of the can and that dot lines up with the bottom of that straw.
jNBnQ TIL about Kentucky abolitionist politician Cassius Marcellus Clay. During a debate in 1843, he survived an assassination attempt due to his political views. Despite being shot in the chest, Clay drew his Bowie knife, tackled his would be assassin, cut out his eyes, and threw him over an embankment.