› added 11 years ago

431

TIL that Neil Armstrong only believed he had a 50/50 chance of making it back to Earth

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16VL8 TIL, in 1981 a group of American and Canadian citizens plotted to overthrow the government of Dominica with the aim of reinstalling it's former Prime Minister. The plotters were caught and imprisoned, including the former PM.
woVxW TIL Stephen Hillenburg was inspired to create 'SpongeBob SquarePants' while listening to Ween's album 'The Mollusk' while tripping on acid in 1997.
aY1J TIL until 1957, British television ceased broadcasting between 6-7pm each weekday so that parents could put their children to bed.
VQLZ TIL that the number of fires in the US declined more than 50% from 1981 to 2011, due to reduced smoking and fire-resistant materials, and that only 5% of calls for firefighters are now fires
W8PL TIL that when we sleep, our brain cells shrink, encouraging cerebrospinal fluid flow which flushes out toxins built up in the brain. This explains why we can’t think clearly after a sleepless night.