› added 2 months ago

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TIL that the James Webb Telescope orbits a Lagrange point, a spot in space where the gravity from earth and sun (or another set of bodies) cancel one another out and satellites can orbit the spot rather than earth, giving a unique perspective.

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lpxa TIL the speech Eisenhower would have given if D-day had failed is only 66-words long.
R5rJw TIL that Daniel Day-Lewis was Peter Jackson's first choice for playing Aragorn in LOTR.
8NgZ TIL that many Cherokee Indians sided and fought with the Confederacy during the American Civil War, both because many were black slave owners themselves and also because they resented the Union for their treatment during the Trail of Tears.
wxj1 TIL that the medieval Arab philosopher and skeptic al-Ma'arri wrote that religion consisted of ancient fables used to exploit the popular masses
JYXn8 TIL The "Never argue with a fool" quote lacks proof crediting it to Mark Twain. The oldest suspected source is biblical proverbs 26:4 and 26:5: "Do not answer a fool according to his folly, Or you will also be like him. Answer a fool as his folly deserves, That he not be wise in his own eyes."