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TIL in 1660 Prince Rupert brought bulbous shaped glass "drops" to King Charles II. These were the first instance of a predecessor to tempered glass. They could withstand a blow from a hammer on the bulbous end without breaking, while exhibiting explosive disintegration if the tail was damage.

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grOQ4 TIL in 1962 a General Electric engineer named Nick Holonyak developed the first LED light bulb capable of emitting visible red light. The same bulb was used in the 1964 stop animation animated TV special Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer for Rudolph’s bioluminescent nose.
yn7X TIL the guy that ran against Hitler in the German Presidential Election of 1932 was arrested 1 year later, thrown into solitary confinement until 1944, and then shot on Hitlers order.
xVnMD TIL that when Ronald E. Rosser lost one of his brothers in Korea, he enlisted to get revenge and would end up earning the Medal of Honor. When another brother was killed in Vietnam, he once again volunteered to fight but was turned down.
BglNK TIL that a video game was written in one month. Andrew and Philip Oliver promised 'Super Robin Hood' for Christmas 1986. To meet the deadline, the twin brothers used their only computer 23 hours a day, each working 18 hours in overlapping shifts. The game was successful and began their careers.
QN7LM TIL that Thomas Jefferson invented the swivel chair. He supposedly drafted the Declaration of Independence while sitting in his own creation, making it one of the first recorded uses of a swivel chair in history.