› added 12 years ago

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TIL Leon Theremin invented the Rhythmicon, the world’s first drum-machine. Today is his birthday.

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XxgE TIL Saab in 1992 made a prototype vehicle dubbed “Prometheus” that had no steering wheel. Instead, to steer it, the driver had an aircraft like joystick. It greatly increased safety, space and aesthetics. The production model would have had two Joysticks, one for each arm / hand.
0dMLM TIL that the classic “devils horns” ears that Doberman dogs are known for is actually a result of a practice called “cropping”, where the flappy part of an animals ear is surgically removed.
awGEN TIL that the seventh most populous city in the world, Mumbai, also has one of the highest densities of leopards (41 leopards) in a forest inside the city and the leopard population saves Mumbai US$18,000 by keeping the stray dogs population in check.
x9Mw TIL that jack o'lanterns were originally carved from turnips not pumpkins
mxJ1x TIL that "Gish gallop" is a debate technique that focuses on overwhelming an opponent with as many arguments as possible without regard for accuracy or strength of the arguments