Transport
Discover facts about transport. Small discoveries that change the way you see familiar things.
Transport
German submarine U-1206 sank during World War II after the captain improperly operated its highly complex deep-water flushing toilet, causing pressurized seawater and human waste…
German submarine U-1206 sank during World War II after the captain improperly operated its highly complex deep-water flushing toilet, causing pressurized…
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Early submarines relied on white mice instead of electronic sensors to detect dangerous leaks of carbon monoxide and other toxic gases while trapped deep underwater.
Early submarines relied on white mice instead of electronic sensors to detect dangerous leaks of carbon monoxide and other toxic gases while trapped deep…
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Most 'close door' buttons in modern elevators are completely fake and do absolutely nothing to speed up your escape from forced small talk with your coworkers.
Most 'close door' buttons in modern elevators are completely fake and do absolutely nothing to speed up your escape from forced small talk with your…
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Commercial airplanes are struck by lightning approximately once a year, yet they have not crashed from a strike since 1967 due to some remarkably clever engineering.
Commercial airplanes are struck by lightning approximately once a year, yet they have not crashed from a strike since 1967 due to some remarkably clever…
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Soviet engineers in the 1970s strapped two massive turbojet engines from a Yak-40 passenger plane to the roof of a standard commuter train just to see how fast it could go.
Soviet engineers in the 1970s strapped two massive turbojet engines from a Yak-40 passenger plane to the roof of a standard commuter train just to see how…
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Thomas Fitzpatrick stole a single-engine plane from a New Jersey flight school in 1956 and landed it perfectly on a narrow Manhattan street right in front of a bar where he had been drinking.
Thomas Fitzpatrick stole a single-engine plane from a New Jersey flight school in 1956 and landed it perfectly on a narrow Manhattan street right in front of…
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Boeing 747-400 aircraft were still receiving their crucial navigation database updates via a massive stack of 3.5-inch floppy disks well into the year 2020.
Boeing 747-400 aircraft were still receiving their crucial navigation database updates via a massive stack of 3.5-inch floppy disks well into the year 2020.…
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British authorities during the Second World War mandated that farmers paint white stripes on the sides of their cows so that drivers navigating through mandatory blackout…
British authorities during the Second World War mandated that farmers paint white stripes on the sides of their cows so that drivers navigating through…
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Airport identifier codes assigned by the International Air Transport Association often make no logical sense to casual travelers because the three-letter system ran out of…
Airport identifier codes assigned by the International Air Transport Association often make no logical sense to casual travelers because the three-letter…
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United Parcel Service route optimization software dictates that their delivery trucks should almost never make left-hand turns, a policy that saves them over ten million gallons…
United Parcel Service route optimization software dictates that their delivery trucks should almost never make left-hand turns, a policy that saves them over…
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Solid rocket boosters for the NASA Space Shuttle had to be designed to a specific width of exactly four feet and eight and a half inches because they were shipped by train, and…
Solid rocket boosters for the NASA Space Shuttle had to be designed to a specific width of exactly four feet and eight and a half inches because they were…
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United States Navy Virginia-class nuclear submarines utilize standard, off-the-shelf Xbox 360 controllers to operate their extremely advanced photonic mast systems, which are…
United States Navy Virginia-class nuclear submarines utilize standard, off-the-shelf Xbox 360 controllers to operate their extremely advanced photonic mast…
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Julius Caesar implemented one of the earliest known forms of traffic congestion pricing and vehicle bans in ancient Rome, completely forbidding heavy wooden supply wagons from…
Julius Caesar implemented one of the earliest known forms of traffic congestion pricing and vehicle bans in ancient Rome, completely forbidding heavy wooden…
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French railway operator SNCF spent fifteen billion euros on a fleet of new commuter trains in 2014, only to discover they were too wide for twelve hundred regional station platforms.
French railway operator SNCF spent fifteen billion euros on a fleet of new commuter trains in 2014, only to discover they were too wide for twelve hundred…
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Commercial airplanes occasionally have to dump thousands of gallons of aviation fuel directly into the sky if they need to make an emergency landing shortly after takeoff.
Commercial airplanes occasionally have to dump thousands of gallons of aviation fuel directly into the sky if they need to make an emergency landing shortly…
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Massachusetts issued the first state-mandated automobile license plates in the United States back in 1903, but the government did not actually manufacture them, forcing drivers…
Massachusetts issued the first state-mandated automobile license plates in the United States back in 1903, but the government did not actually manufacture…
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Wild animals run on wheels just for fun
Scientists placed a small running wheel in the middle of the woods to see what would happen. Mice, shrews, and even frogs eagerly hopped on for a spin,…
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The first baby stroller was pulled by a goat
William Kent designed a tiny, incredibly ornate shell-shaped carriage for the Duke of Devonshire's children in 1733. Instead of the parents pushing it, they…
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Why storks became symbols of babies
European parents needed a wildly creative lie to explain where infants came from. Since storks returned from their long migration exactly nine months after…
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Walking via deep knee lunges shreds human thigh muscles
The lunge is an exercise masquerading as forward movement. By dropping your back knee completely to the floor with every single step, you turn a simple walk…
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Tribes dragged heavy wooden frames behind local dogs
Before European settlers brought larger livestock, North American tribes strapped two long wooden poles to their camp dogs to haul supplies. The poor canines…
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Why jugglers rode one-wheeled bicycles
Removing a wheel from a perfectly good contraption seems like a terrible idea. However, performance artists realized that balancing precariously on a single…
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Butterfly stroke began as a loophole in the rules
In the 1930s, clever swimmers realized the breaststroke rules never explicitly banned bringing your arms entirely out of the water. They exploited this…
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Shuffleboard requires absolutely zero athletic skill
The game became an enduring staple of ocean travel purely because it is the only sport you can conceivably play while slightly inebriated and desperately…
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