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TIL Playdough was originally invented to clean soot off of wallpaper back when we used to burn coal for heat.

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P1Y7w TIL that the word ‘alcohol’ originates from the Arabic word Al-kohl (like the eyeliner). Ancient Egyptians made the cosmetic through a process involving heating. During the Middle Ages, the term was adopted in reference to numerous substances produced through similar means, including “alcohol”.
x6aKk TIL North America was once divided by the great Western Interior Seaway that ranged from the present Artic to Gulf of Mexico beginning around the Mesozoic period (approx. 200 millions years ago +/-) Its why Alberta, a land locked province, has such great fossil deposits.
8alkX TIL the first widespread book detailing contraception and sexual health was created and published illegally by some Canadian students in 1968. The ‘Birth Control Handbook’ rapidly gained popularity with its critical information and, within a year, millions were distributed across the US and Canada.
4XOaX TIL of the Floppotron, a "robot orchestra" made from obsolete drives and scanners whose stepper motors are run at different speeds to produce musical tones.
BRKe TIL: In 2000 the KKK adopted a stretch of highway near St Louis, the MO government responded by renaming the road the “Rosa Parks Highway”.