Recent comments in /f/todayilearned

milo159 t1_jd3e3vv wrote

Reply to comment by DeNir8 in TIL A coal seam in Australia is believed to have been burning for 6,000 years, making it the oldest coal fire. The site's name is Mount Wingen but is commonly called Burning Mountain and the fire is traveling south 1m per year discoloring the ground as it goes. by jamescookenotthatone

Its a vein of coal in the earth, its not gonna expand beyond the bounds of the coal, its just that short of excavating the ENTIRE thing theres no way to make it stop, and making a pit that big costs a lot of money. That much funding would frankly do more good elsewhere.

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Few-Ad-1381 t1_jd3cebe wrote

Reply to comment by tetoffens in TIL the term "death row" comes from an assassination attempt on FDR. The shooter Giuseppe Zangara was sentenced to death, but there was already a convict awaiting execution, and FL law forbade them from sharing cells. A second cell was built, turning the "death cell" into the first "death row." by AdmiralAkbar1

Don't underestimate the power of a short shooter, you never know who's packing a Napoleon complex.

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Elite_Jackalope t1_jd3b1hl wrote

Reply to comment by SomeplaceManitoba in TIL A coal seam in Australia is believed to have been burning for 6,000 years, making it the oldest coal fire. The site's name is Mount Wingen but is commonly called Burning Mountain and the fire is traveling south 1m per year discoloring the ground as it goes. by jamescookenotthatone

Did you, like, intentionally read around the stuff you didn’t like?

Not everything, especially concerning ancient human societies, has to boil down to “religion bad.” Until fairly recently (in the grand scheme of our existence) religion and the supernatural was how all people alive understood the world.

> The Aborigines named the mountain Wingen, which means 'fire'. Their explanation of the origin of the burning mountain was that one day, a tribesman was lighting a fire on the mountainside when he was carried off deep into the earth by The Evil One. Unable to escape, he used his fire stick to set the mountain alight, so that the smoke might warn others to keep away.

He is literally carried into the mountain by an evil spirit and lights the mountain on fire to warn others of the spirit’s presence. The complete opposite of your understanding.

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milo159 t1_jd3a31z wrote

Reply to comment by crispy1978 in TIL A coal seam in Australia is believed to have been burning for 6,000 years, making it the oldest coal fire. The site's name is Mount Wingen but is commonly called Burning Mountain and the fire is traveling south 1m per year discoloring the ground as it goes. by jamescookenotthatone

Because putting out a fire that rages through a million tiny cracks in the ground requires that you find ALL of those tiny cracks. This is not something science has an answer to yet.

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SomeplaceManitoba t1_jd39y1b wrote

Reply to TIL A coal seam in Australia is believed to have been burning for 6,000 years, making it the oldest coal fire. The site's name is Mount Wingen but is commonly called Burning Mountain and the fire is traveling south 1m per year discoloring the ground as it goes. by jamescookenotthatone

The local explanation is so blunt, a man fell down a sinkhole. He lit a torch and incinerated himself. No magic sky birds, just a poor unfortunate who warns us to this day of his folly.

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tetoffens t1_jd38xhv wrote

Reply to TIL the term "death row" comes from an assassination attempt on FDR. The shooter Giuseppe Zangara was sentenced to death, but there was already a convict awaiting execution, and FL law forbade them from sharing cells. A second cell was built, turning the "death cell" into the first "death row." by AdmiralAkbar1

Huh, didn't know about this assassination attempt on FDR. And glad I do now, for the funny mental image.

So Giuseppe Zangara decided to try to shoot Roosevelt while he was surrounded by a crowd of people. The problem was Giuseppe was only 5 feet tall. So in order to try to line up his shot and actually see what he was shooting at, he stood on a wobbly chair and then used the shoulder of the woman (who was only a few inches taller) in front of him to try to keep the gun still while he fired.

It's just...I don't want to be one of those people who makes fun of people for their height but come on. Tiny assassin. Makes me think of the guy from the 3rd season of Twin Peaks.

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Joseluki t1_jd3807g wrote

Reply to comment by beastroll87 in TIL that the Incans genetically modified and hybridized crops such as potatoes at sites like the Moray Terrace. by A_Generic_White_Guy

Because policy is made by politicians, not scientists.

Selective breeding is a means of genetical modification, it is genetic engineering.

Your aim is to obtain a progeny with certain genotype so you are directing their breeding towards it.

That is why the term GMO exits, to make a disctinction between organisms that have been obtained by selective breeding and hydridzation vs organisms that have been obtained by genomic techniques.

You could crossbreed to obtain genetically modified dwarf strains of cereals that would not bend by the weight of their seeds.

You could push a microorganisms to certain environments during multiple generations to obtain a more resistant to toxic subproduct or an antibiotic without ever having to use genomic technique. And that is considered metabolic engineering. You could obtain the same result using genomic techniques too and that would be a GMO organism.

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beastroll87 t1_jd36z81 wrote

Reply to comment by Joseluki in TIL that the Incans genetically modified and hybridized crops such as potatoes at sites like the Moray Terrace. by A_Generic_White_Guy

I'm a Biotechnologist too. Answer me this: how does normal food like for example wheat which has obviously been selectively bred is not labelled as GM, but other products that have been GM are labelled as such. Use common sense. Here is a site for you to understand cos clearly you need to go back to college: https://www.expii.com/t/gmo-genetically-modified-organisms-meaning-examples-10241

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