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TIL of the Onagawa Nuclear Power Plant that was closest to the epicenter of the 2011 tsunami in Japan but was undamaged because it far exceeded the required safety measures due to the stubbornness of one man. Fukushima famously experienced fatal meltdowns because safety measures were inadequate.

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j9ra TIL In 1986 Bethesda created their first PC title, a football game with advanced physics. EA approached Bethesda for the source code for their own franchise John Madden Football in return for publishing future Bethesda titles but mysteriously backed out of the deal after they received said code.
jNoR TIL that TRON (1982) was disqualified from receiving an Academy Award nomination for special effects, because the Academy felt using computers was “cheating”.
EgEL0 TIL: In 1666, the plague-infested village of Eyam quarantined itself inside a marked circle for 14 months. Neighboring communities left food at the edge of the circle in exchange for disinfected coins. 80% of the people died, but no one crossed the circle.
R5RMj TIL That while opposing candidate Milton Shapp, The Philadelphia Inquirer had a reporter ask if he had ever been admitted to a mental hospital, to which he replied “No.” The next day they ran the headline “Shapp Denies Mental Institution Stay”. His subsequent loss is attributed to the article.
j6Lnp TIL Aristotle hypothesized that nature contains no vacuums because the denser surrounding material continuum would immediately fill the rarity of an incipient void. The hypothesis was termed horror vacui (Latin: horror of the vacuum) or plenism— commonly stated as "nature abhors a vacuum".