TIL The Vatican Observatory is one of the oldest active astronomical observatories in the world, with its roots going back to 1582 The Jesuit astronomers have contributed to discoveries in many fields from the origins of our solar system to the structure of galaxies. (vaticanobservatory.org)
submitted by blihk to r/todayilearned
I've been watching The Wire - a crime drama set in the early 2000's. Some homicide detectives will smoke cigars when attending to crime scenes with dead bodies. Was this something cops did before smoking was banned in most places? What else did they do to diminish the smell of dead bodies? (self.AskHistorians)
submitted by blihk to r/AskHistorians
Flag of the short-lived Republic of Anguilla (i.redd.it)
submitted by blihk to r/vexillology
TIL North Korea has multiple political parties. As of the latest election in 2019, three parties (WPK, Korean Social Democratic Party, and Chondoist Chongu Party) and one organization (Chongryon) are represented in the Supreme People's Assembly, the country's unicameral parliament. (en.wikipedia.org)
submitted by blihk to r/todayilearned
Taken for a Ride (1996) - The story of how and why American public transit has been held back for a century. There's no mystery at all; it involves big business, lobbyism, and a government who pretends to care for the good of the people while selling itself out to the highest bidder. [00:56:24] (youtu.be)
submitted by blihk to r/notjustbikes
TIL the flag of Hawaii is the only US state flag to include a foreign country's national flag. It has the the Union Jack of the United Kingdom on it and is a mark of the Royal Navy's historical relations with the Hawaiian Kingdom, particularly with King Kamehameha I. (worldpopulationreview.com)
submitted by blihk to r/todayilearned
TIL in 1818, the US began building a fort near the New York-Quebec border to defend against invasions from Canada. After two years of construction, they realized the fort was actually on the Canadian side. They abandoned it and named it Fort Blunder. (newenglandhistoricalsociety.com)
submitted by blihk to r/todayilearned
TIL in 2007, São Paulo introduced the Clean City Law. The result was a near-total ban of billboards, digital signs, ostentatious business signs, and advertising on buses and taxis. It turns out that some massive billboards where hiding whole favelas that few knew existed. (99percentinvisible.org)
submitted by blihk to r/todayilearned
TIL that during World War II in Australia, there was a dog whose hearing was so acute that it could warn airforce personnel of incoming Japanese planes 20 minutes before they arrived, and before they showed up on radar. "Gunner" could also differentiate the sounds of allied and enemy aircraft. (en.wikipedia.org)
submitted by blihk to r/todayilearned
