› added 9 years ago

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TIL that to study wind currents, the US Navy sprayed San Francisco with S. marcescens, thought to be a non-pathogenic bacterium. Doctors soon noted drastic increases in pneumonia and urinary tract infections.

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QJYxE TIL that the Maya used to import turkeys from Mexico and worship them like gods.
vPX14 TIL that during the Vietnam war there were 7 discharges, 17 AWOL cases, 2 disciplinary charges, 12 complains to congress and 18 non-judicial punishments in every 100 groups of soldiers, whilst one third report some form of consistent drug abuse
a8LOb TIL The Spanish were the first European settlers in the Florida Keys, and upon unearthing a burial mound on one of the southernmost keys, they named it Caya Hueso, Bone Island, a name later Anglicized into Key West. Spain officially relinquished control of Florida to the United States in 1821.
9w8yp TIL: San Fransisco has very few cemeteries. But the city was once full of cemeteries. As San Francisco's population rapidly grew, "people turned against the cemeteries". Eventually, most of the cemeteries were dug up and transferred out of the city.
PY9yn TIL that the CIA admittedly disseminated fake evidence of UFO sightings in the 1950s and 60s to provide "cover" explanations for test flights of the U2 and other stealth aircraft