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143

TIL of Thomas De Quincy, a 19th century opium addict whose memoir is responsible for the invention of 159 common words including earth-shattering, interconnection, incubator, entourage, subconscious and post-natal. He also popularised the term 'pipe dream'.

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pYoRG TIL the Mississippi River was once five miles wide and whales swam up it from the Gulf of America. The remains of these whales have been found in Michigan.
roXW TIL in 1930 two brothers created the first car radio which was called a “motorized victrola” which they shortened to Motorola.
RbMw TIL that smelling a male pheromone prompts the same brain activity in homosexual men as it does in heterosexual women.
b9Re4 TIL during one of the Graham Bond Organization concerts drummer Ginger Baker attacked his bandmate, bassist Jack Bruce, with a knife.
kxn4 TIL Edwin H. Armstrong the inventor of the FM radio committed suicide because he was spending 90% of his time on litigation against RCA who were trying to suppress the technology.