› added 6 months ago

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TIL Birds trained for Hitchcock's The Birds couldn't be untrained. They stayed killer birds.

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vkxj TIL Ebola killed 0.1% of the population in Africa’s three most affected countries in 2014. The average person there is more likely to die in a traffic accident than by Ebola and almost nobody there wear seatbelts
DQEaY TIL that when England held its first lottery in 1567 everyone who bought a ticket got immunity from one arrest as long as it was not piracy, murder, felonies, or treason. Prizes for winning the lottery were £5,000 in cash, but also goods like plate, tapestries and “good linen cloth.”
p8x1Q TIL that after their victory at the Battle of Marathon, the Greeks carved a statue of Nemesis (the goddess who punishes the arrogant) out of an enormous block of marble that the Persians had brought to the battle with the intention of carving a monument to their victory over the Greeks.
Br08K TIL: Irish actor Liam Neeson (Taken, Schindler's List, etc.) was offered the role of James Bond, but turned it down because his fiancée told him she wouldn't marry him if he took the role.
LMDr TIL James Doohan (Star Trek’s Scotty) saved a fan from suicide. After receiving a suicide note, he convinced her to attend his next convention appearance. Later he discovered his encouragement had not only saved her life, but also inspired her to go back to school and become an electronics engineer.