› added 9 years ago

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TIL of USAF Captain Craig Button. In 1997 he broke formation and flew his jet for almost 800 miles before crashing into a mountain. The bombs on his jet were not recovered at the crash site and no one knows what happened to the bombs or the reason for his actions.

nWpJ9 TIL that nearly 10% of the population of Pingelap Atoll is achromatopsic, i.e. unable to distinguish colors but only shades of gray. This is due to a person suffering from achromatopsia who survived a Typhoon in 1775. The disease was then passed on to his descendants, and continues to this day.
nebnB TIL of 4-7-8 breathing (inhale 4 seconds, hold 7 seconds, exhale 8 seconds, repeat). Based on pranayama breathing exercises, this "natural tranquilizer for the nervous system" activates the body's parasympathetic nervous system (relaxation) and suppresses the sympathetic nervous system (stress).
5Ykgn TIL that refrigerators with the freezer on the upper part is more energy efficient than those with the freezer on the lower part. This is because colder air is denser, and if the freezer compartment is on the top, cold air can just passively move to the fridge compartment on the lower part.
8g6X TIL that scurvy was documented as a disease by Hippocrates, and Egyptians have recorded its symptoms as early as 1550 BC. The knowledge that consuming foods containing vitamin C is a cure for scurvy has been repeatedly rediscovered and forgotten into the early 20th century.
xnPg TIL of “Yasuke” the first recorded foreign born samurai in Japan from the 16th century. He was a black man from Mozambique and would have been extremely tall at the time. It was reported he had the strength of 10 men.