› added 6 years ago

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TIL there was a plan in the 1920s/30s to dam the Mediterranean Sea, create a series of hydroelectric dams, lower sea levels and make North Africa more fertile. It was imagined by a German who wanted to avoid another world war for resources, land and energy by providing plentiful resources for Europe

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pY5Ab TIL Olivia Colman's real name is Sarah Sinclair (née Colman). She had to adopt a different stage name when she began working professionally because Equity (the UK actors' union) already had an actress named Sarah Colman.
ZQbY TIL during the Crusades, at the siege of Acre, the Templar Grandmaster dropped his sword and walked away from the walls, confusing his men. ‘I’m not running away’, he said 'I am dead. Here is the blow’. He raised his arm to show an arrow penetrating his mail under his armpit, mortally wounding him.
69AWY TIL about the 1985 Manchester Airport Disaster, where a plane caught fire during takeoff, and unclear and inadequate evacuation procedures, combined with jammed exit doors, led to the death of 55 of the 137 people on board
RLkl TIL Tupac may have accidentally shot a six year old boy in 1992, but was never criminally charged despite evidence the fatal bullet came from a handgun registered to him. He later settled a wrongful death suit brought by the boy’s mother out of court for $300K-$500K
R7op7 TIL about A.L.EX. (Avian Language EXperiment) the Parrot, who had the intelligence of a 5 year old human and even managed to say some famous last words: "You be good, see you tomorrow. I love you." to his caretaker.