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TIL in the 1990s a man gained an edge on a Spanish casino by recording roulette wheel results & analyzing them with a computer. He was able to predict certain numbers were more likely to hit next. After he won €600K, a legal case against him was unsuccessful; it ruled the casino should fix its wheel

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YpAVP TIL The modern conspiracy - The Illuminati, was an art project/protest in the late 60's by a political theorist and a staffer at Playboy to show the public how ridiculous and disempowering it was to think a group of secretive people controlled the world.
QNaKd TIL that in 1957, Queen Elizabeth II was awarded the title "Admiral in the Great Navy of the State of Nebraska." Despite the name, the title has no connection to an actual navy, as Nebraska is landlocked. Today, it’s simply known as "Nebraska Admiral."
4XvnX TIL Of William A. Jackson, a former slave of Jefferson Davis, the President of the Confederates, who regularly watched meetings between Davis and Confederate officials. He escaped in 1861 and went north, giving the union much info about Confederate military deployments and planning.
0Eyp TIL Navy SEALs began as a Naval Combat Demolition Unit eliminating obstacles on enemy-held beaches at Normandy prior to invasion. The NCDUs at Omaha Beach blew 8 complete gaps and 2 partial gaps in the German defenses by clearing 700 yds of beach in 2 hours, another 900 yds by the afternoon.
kOKPd TIL that Scottish scientist James Croll, who would go on to revolutionize climate science, got his start by teaching himself physics and astronomy at a university library at night. He was employed there as a janitor.