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TIL: The skyscraper in Times Square where the ball drops is completely abandoned, and has been for decades.

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AN9J4 TIL Judge Alex Kozinski, who ruled on the early 2000s Mattel, Inc. v. MCA Records, Inc. (Barbie Girl song) dismissed the case; concluded his ruling by saying, "The parties are advised to chill”.
d8EkB TIL about the Kowloon Walled City, a completely ungoverned settlement in the middle of Hong Kong. It was the most dense settlement in history, and was built entirely by hand.
ONX4 TIL that Mormon prophet Joseph Smith claimed to have transcribed The Book of Abraham from ancient Egyptian papyri, which experts later determined was actually common Egyptian funeral text.
pYxWb TIL that In 1816, after the eruption of Mount Tambora in Indonesia, Earth experienced the “Year Without a Summer.” Global temperatures dropped, leading to food shortages, crop failures, and extreme weather events
neyNr TIL that the Kremlin has a division of trained hawks that defend the building from crows. At first, keepers tried to use pre-recorded shrieks, but crows got used to them, so falcons-later hawks, were used. They are easier and cheaper to train. There’s also an eagle-owl that hunts at night.