› added 4 years ago

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TIL about the "Duffy Blood Group" which serves as a receptor for some malaria species and that it is less present in Blacks resulting in increased resistance to malaria

e0G7L TIL Capt. Joe Hazelwood, responsible for the Exxon Valdez disaster that spilled 11 million gallons of oil into Prince William Sound and cost $7B to clean, was only found guilty of a misdemeanor (negligent discharge of oil), and was fined $50,000, and sentenced to 1,000 hours of community service.
XYeX TIL while on duty at a Soviet nuclear attack warning station in 1983, Stanislav Petrov’s computer indicated the US had fired several missles. He decided his computer was faulty and urged against a launch. He was right, averting nuclear war, but was not rewarded and was reprimanded by his superiors.
e005g TIL during the recording of U2's "Where The Streets Have No Name", producer Brian Eno got so annoyed with how difficult it was to record that he was about to erase the tapes. When a studio engineer saw him about to do this he dropped the tea tray he was holding and physically restrained Eno.
xV7M7 TIL Alaric, who became King of the Visigoths and sacked Rome in 410 CE, was conscripted as a Roman soldier earlier in his life. While fighting in the Alpine passes, he likely learned the weaknesses of Rome's natural defenses.
aw6QZ TIL Jeremy Soule was inspired to write music for TES: Oblivion which reflects the human condition and the beauty of life, after being involved in a car crash which he was lucky to survive.