› added 4 years ago

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TIL that 'Song 2' by Blur was almost cut as it was a deliberately-basic song the band never took seriously, but record execs liked it when it was on the list of possible singles; the band never bothered to change the album's tracklist placeholder, and coincidentally is 2:02 in length

pYaOQ TIL about "Green Rust", a highly reactive iron mineral that scientists believe could have been a precursor to life on Earth by acting as a catalyst for converting simple organic molecules into more complex structures
VMG7B TIL, Larry Walters rode a lawn chair attached to helium balloons to 16,000 feet and using a pellet gun, he controlled his descent by firing the gun at the balloons, popping them one by one.
raK1 TIL The domesticated dog evolved from a tamer version of the gray wolf. Based on DNA evidence, researchers currently believe the dog was domesticated in Asia at least 15,000 years ago, with some scientists arguing that dogs and humans have been partners for as long as 100,000 years.
n0pW TIL: Patrick Ewing was close to signing a letter of intent with the University of North Carolina. While visiting the campus he stayed at the Carolina Inn and after witnessing a rally for the Ku Klux Klan ultimately decided not to sign with UNC.
dDyZd TIL that the first Coachella Music Festival was held in 1999. It was inspired by a 1993 Pearl Jam concert. Pearl Jam's lead singer, Eddie Vedder, led the band to boycott venues controlled by Ticketmaster and perform at the Empire Polo Club grounds instead.