› added 12 years ago

95

TIL that lead makes things sweet, making lead paint a much bigger problem for children.

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via reddit.com

yQXOp TIL the 'Cowboy Load' - in the Wild West, it was most common for 6-shot revolvers to only be loaded with 5 rounds. A live bullet in the chamber below the hammer of a 19th century single-action revolver can be set off with a sharp knock, hence it was not desirable to carry one fully loaded
R7kW6 TIL French neuroscientist Michel Jouvet disabled the mechanism in cats brains that inhibits movement during REM sleep. While sleeping the cats moved their heads, arched their backs, and stalked invisible prey.
1ab8X TIL Randy and Linda Guijarro were at an antique shop and Randy came across a shoebox of old tintype photographs. One of the photos he selected out of the box is believed to be just the second known photography of Billy The Kid. Randy paid $2 for the photo, but is now appraised at $5 million.
rQMy TIL in 1981, a tenant was evicted in Germany after spreading Surströmming (fermented Baltic Sea herrring) brine in the stairway. The landlord was taken to court, where he brought a can of Surströmming as evidence. After being opened, the court unanimously ruled in his favor because of the smell.
jRjX TIL that nudists were early adopters of volleyball and by the 1960s a volleyball court was standard in most nudist clubs.