› added 5 years ago

92

TIL there was a branch of the US mint in the Philippines, and it minted US pesos

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e0eDn TIL of Peter Freuchen, who crossed 1,000 km of ice via dogsled, freed himself from an avalanche with a shiv made of his own feces, wrote 12+ books & was editor-in-chief of a women's magazine, escaped a Nazi prison despite having lost a leg to frostbite, and wrote/acted in an Oscar-winning film.
m1aeY TIL that when the United States entered WWII, men 21-36 were eligible to be drafted, but 50% of those conscripted were rejected for health or illiteracy reasons. To expand the available pool of draftees, Congress lowered the minimum age to 18, where it still stands today
9MgG TIL in 1969, the U.S. under Nixon went into nuclear readiness alert and flew nuclear armed fighter jets along Soviet airspace for three days. This was part of Nixon’s Madman Theory, in which he tried to give off the image that he was unstable to make sure the Soviets would never provoke the U.S.
kJaEd TIL that scientists have discovered a species of bacteria called Deinococcus radiodurans, which has earned the nickname "Conan the Bacterium" due to its extraordinary ability to withstand extreme levels of radiation.
Wgad TIL there are more species of fish found in the Amazon river then are recorded in the entire Atlantic ocean.