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TIL the first MP3, created in 1987 by Karlheinz Brandenburg, was Suzanne Vega’s “Tom’s Diner”. He chose it because the human voice is hardest to compress and believed Vega’s a capella was the perfect test.

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R7RJQ TIL The water speed record is one of the deadliest competitions with an 85% fatality rate. The current record of 317 MPH was set in 1978 by an Australian, Ken Warby, using a vessel built in his backyard with an engine purchased for $69.
GYYk1 TIL outdoor cats are the #1 threat to bird populations. They have contributed to the extinction of 33 bird populations and are responsible for roughly 2.4 billion in bird losses per year.
6EaGW TIL that Paris gets its name from the Parisii, a sub-tribe of the Celtic Senones, who between 250 and 225 BC, settled on the banks of the Seine, built bridges and a fort, minted coins, and began to trade with other river settlements in Europe
nPo7 TIL that jaywalking is not illegal in the UK, and that while pedestrian crossings are plentiful, they are not compulsory to use. Ultimately, it is seen as the personal responsibility of the individual to make a sound enough judgement to cross safely.
BOXr TIL The US Army Special Forces have a training exercise where they have to liberate a fake country called “Pineland” in the style of a LARP. Since the exercise is based within an actual town, actual civilians are often called upon to preform roles such as shopkeepers or torturers.