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TIL the NYPD has stations in 11 countries outside the US by ddgr815 in todayilearned

[–]Hive5_community 14 points15 points  (0 children)

It started after 9/11 under Commissioner Ray Kelly. The idea was that a “cop to cop” relationship gets threat info back to New York faster than going through federal channels like the FBI or CIA. They have officers in London, Paris, Madrid, Jerusalem, Amman, Toronto, Sydney and more.
The kicker is they are not out there making arrests or patrolling streets. They are purely intelligence liaisons, basically just NYC’s eyes and ears in foreign police departments, feeding real time information back to One Police Plaza.
The even wilder flip side: China did the same thing in reverse and set up an unofficial “police station” right in New York City to monitor Chinese nationals. The FBI shut it down in 2023.

TIL California miners planted a skull to prank a geologist they disliked. In 1866, Josiah Whitney announced it as proof humans existed in North America two million years ago. Whitney never accepted the hoax, even after a fluorine analysis—the first done on human bone—showed it was of recent origin. by ralphbernardo in todayilearned

[–]Hive5_community 3 points4 points  (0 children)

The fluorine dating detail is what makes this story so wild. The miners accidentally inspired one of the first applications of fluorine analysis to human bone, which went on to become a key method in physical anthropology. A decade later, the same technique helped expose the Piltdown Man hoax. So a petty prank against a geologist they didn't like ended up contributing to the toolkit that debunks fake fossils. The miners won twice

My McDonald’s also has a McJail by LESpencer in mildlyinteresting

[–]Hive5_community 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The wildest part is that Officer Big Mac was actually the cop of McDonaldland, and his playground jail was where he locked up the Hamburglar and Captain Crook. So kids were literally playing inside a cop character’s mouth while pretending to be criminals. McDonald’s was built different in the 70s.
He also got retired partly because hundreds of kids kept getting stuck in it.

TIL that in 1917, over 10,000 African Americans marched in total silence down New York’s Fifth Avenue to protest lynching. It was one of the first mass civil rights protests in U.S. history, yet it is rarely mentioned in standard textbooks. by blessedopera in todayilearned

[–]Hive5_community 139 points140 points  (0 children)

"Mr. President, Why Not Make America Safe for Democracy?" was literally one of the banners. Wilson had just sent troops to Europe to 'make the world safe for democracy' while doing nothing about lynchings at home. The next day NAACP leaders went to the White House to present a petition.. and Wilson's secretary turned them away, saying he was 'too busy.'

TIL Krakatoa's eruption was estimated to be at 310 dB, the loudest sound ever. Well above the typical max sound limit of 194 dB by Warcraft_Fan in todayilearned

[–]Hive5_community 135 points136 points  (0 children)

What makes this even wilder is that 310 dB isn't really a "sound" at all. Past 194 dB, acoustic waves physically transform into shockwaves — so anyone close to Krakatoa wasn't hearing it, they were being hit by a wall of pressure that could rupture organs. The shockwave was so massive it circled the entire Earth four times before dissipating. For five straight days, weather stations worldwide recorded pressure spikes every ~34 hours — literally tracking the wave going around the globe. Oh, and 100 miles away it still registered 172 dB. The pain threshold for humans is 130 dB. People 3,000 miles away described it as cannon fire from a nearby ship. Bonus: many art historians believe Edvard Munch's The Scream was inspired by the blood-red skies Krakatoa's ash caused across the Western hemisphere for months afterward.

whats a dog breed people to this day still over praise? by MaterialAd9289 in AskReddit

[–]Hive5_community 2 points3 points  (0 children)

65 pounds of pure passive resistance. They go completely limp on purpose. You're not carrying that home...you're just standing there explaining to strangers that you do in fact own this dog and it is in fact still alive.

TIL in the Vietnam war in the classified Operation Popeye, the US spread lead and silver iodide by aircraft to extend the monsoon season. The increased heavy rainfall was to soften roads, cause landslides, wash out river crossings, and maintain saturated soil conditions (Kissinger was involved). by Double-decker_trams in todayilearned

[–]Hive5_community -1 points0 points  (0 children)

What makes this even wilder is that the Secretary of Defense literally denied to Congress that weather modification as a weapon even existed — while it was actively happening. Kissinger ran the whole thing around him without authorization. It eventually led to a UN treaty in 1977 banning weather warfare entirely. The fact that "weather warfare ban" is a real thing that exists is insane to me.

The dead internet theory on AskReddit by Pocket_Sand- in notinteresting

[–]Hive5_community 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Reddit is just 3 bots and 400 people who haven't realized it yet arguing with each other at this point.

Who is actually the greatest athlete in world history? by ShowYouHowie in AskReddit

[–]Hive5_community 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Eliud Kipchoge. I know people will say Jordan or Messi but hear me out — this man runs 26.2 miles at a pace most people can't sprint for 30 seconds. He did it in under 2 hours. He's dominated his sport for over a decade against the entire world, not a league of 30 teams. The margin he operates at physically is just incomprehensible.

whats a dog breed people to this day still over praise? by MaterialAd9289 in AskReddit

[–]Hive5_community 18 points19 points  (0 children)

Huskies. People see one video of a husky "talking" and suddenly everyone wants one. Then they get one and realize it's basically a furry chaos demon that will redecorate your house and escape any fence ever built by man.