› added 6 years ago

94

TIL a Dutch student was suspended from school in 2008 after uploading a video showing him slapping his penis against the Taj Mahal. The act of slapping one's penis against an object is called "swaffelen" and was voted word of the year in 2008 in the Netherlands.

GYpbJ TIL that during WWII 15% of the steel production in the US--180 tons an hour--went across the Hot Metal Bridge in Pittsburgh--as molten steel in huge crucibles built into special rail cars.
9LDp TIL that in 1977, a boycott was launched against Nestlé when it was found that they were giving free samples of baby formula to new mothers in Africa and then charging for it as soon as they were unable to switch back to breastfeeding. This caused high infant mortality and development problems.
yAmp TIL humans usually get the urge to pee when the bladder is just 1/3 full. But in zero gravity, the urge doesn’t kick in till the bladder is almost completely full. When John Glenn orbited the Earth, his only urination was 27 ounces, seven ounces more than the capacity of the avg human bladder.
QNPQE TIL the rat filmed breathing liquid in The Abyss (1989) was really done, and not an effect. The rat is filmed in an emulsion of oxygenated perfluorocarbon emulsion, aka "breathing liquid"
xVR57 TIL that a VR psychology treatment that lets you talk to yourself by switching roles (being both the patient and the psychologist) can lead to detachment from habitual ways of thinking about personal problems. It allows you to treat yourself as you treat others.