› added 5 years ago

210

TIL that the US conducted experiments on their own troops by race back in WW2

Read more npr.org

via reddit.com

yVYl8 TIL the Whitworth rifle, used during the Civil War, is considered the first "sniper rifle", accurate at distances up to 1800m (2000 yd) when equipped with a 4x scope
jNadX TIL that the song ‘The Most Wonderful Time of the Year’ mentioning “scary ghost stories” is from the pre-Christianity pagan belief that the winter solstice, being the longest night, was when the dead could most easily return.
gMBEy TIL that the Apollo 11 astronauts signed applications to Travelers Insurance Company for space travel accident insurance for their mission to the moon. The policies would insure against accidents but also against "disease endemic to the lunar surface or its environs".
Xp8E TIL 2008 was the UN approved International Year of the Potato
OkoL TIL that in a US military exercise from 1978 in which jet fighters were pitted against helicopters, helicopters won 5 to 1.