› added 9 years ago

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TIL: Extinguishing macho culture on oil rigs resulted in a company’s accident rate declining by 84%, while productivity, efficiency, and reliability increased beyond the industry’s previous benchmark

oR1bo TIL There's a "Museum of Failure" in Sweden which highlights 150+ failed products. It's meant to show that innovation requires risk-taking and failure.
rKnw TIL that when the 1937 Marijuana Tax Act was passed, only the birdseed industry successfully lobbied against it by arguing that hemp seeds gave birds shinier feathers than other seeds. Because of this, birdseed producers are legally allowed to import hemp seeds into the US (deactivated) today.
9YMMQ TIL Alice Cooper formed a celebrity "drinking club" in the 1970's called the Hollywood Vampires. You could only join the club if you could out-drink all members, which included Keith Moon, Ringo Starr, Micky Dolenz, Harry Nilsson, John Belushi, and John Lennon.
BrlxD TIL that the term Gaslighting comes from a 1938 play and a 1944 film, in which an abusive husband Gregory manipulates his wife Paula to make her feel as if she has gone mad. One of the ways he does this is by dimming and brightening the gaslights, all while convincing Paula that its all in her head
6v9Z TIL that a Russian serial killer who is also an outstanding chess player has said his aim was to kill 64 people, the number of squares on a chessboard. He later recanted this statement, saying that he would have continued killing indefinitely if he had not been stopped.