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TIL That Napoleon commissioned the development of a system that would allow his troops to communicate at night in the front lines, which was eventually taught to and perfected by 12 year old student Louis Braille.

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woVZ6 TIL Jack Benny's last staring role in a film was in The Horn Blows at Midnight, which was a box office bomb. The film would go on to gain a new life as a punchline on The Jack Benny Program where it was the butt of jokes for over 20 years.
kJa7W TIL of anchorites, medieval Christian ascetics who were walled into a cell ("anchorhold") attached to a church for their entire adult lives. Through small windows, they received sustenance, disposed of waste, and provided spiritual guidance to the public.
OoAAa TIL that one foot of the London Eye is on land owned by the South Bank Centre, who served the wheel's owners with a rent increase of more than 1500%, adding £1m to the bill.
b9KOa TIL that eating grapefruit (and a few of its close relatives) can increase the side effects of certain medications by disrupting a specialized group of proteins in your liver and small intestine called cytochrome P450 (CYPs).
JYQvm TIL there is a formula that can determine the correct amount of caffeine needed for optimal performance, based on factors like amount of sleep.