› added 3 days ago

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TIL that it is illegal in Belgium for railway employees to speak the language of the other region (French or Dutch) when the train is not physically in that region, unless they are spoken to by someone speaking the other language.

Read more theguardian.com

via reddit.com

Oodwa TIL that Smokey Bear's name was inspired by "Smokey" Joe Martin, a New York firefighter who suffered burns and blindness during a 1922 rescue. Also, the symbol of the U.S. Forest Service is actually just "Smokey Bear," not "Smoke the Bear." The "the" was added to help the rhythm of a 1952 song.
JYgDB TIL Kurt Cobain admitted when he wrote Smells Like Teen Spirit he was trying to write the ultimate pop song. “I was basically trying to rip off the Pixies.”
jvAp TIL the youngest soldier in Korean War was Master Sgt. Gilbert Zamora, who able to enlist at 13 because he was already 6'2’’ and weighed 195 pounds.
ADgKo TIL that Phenylephrine, the nasal decongestant that replaced pseudoephedrine in OTC cold medicine, was shown to be ineffective vs placebo at up to 4X the recommended dose, and was not well tolerated starting at 4X the recommended dose.
78Gd7 TIL that German scientists in the 1930s were the first to conceive of the atom bomb, but their research was abruptly ended in 1939 when the government conscripted them. The Nazis never got close to making a functional atom bomb because their scientists were in the battlefield.