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TIL the earliest known reference to a red carpet is from 458 BC, in an Ancient Greek play. After defeating Troy, the king Agamemnon is welcomed home w/ a carpet of crimson tapestries & silk. He's uncomfortable with it, since to him, only gods walk on such luxury, while mortals should be more humble

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16OaX TIL that leeches have 32 brains, 18 testicles, 10 stomachs, 5 pairs of eyes, 2 hearts and 300 teeth in it's three jawed mouth.
wopXY TIL about the discovery of IR and UV light: in 1800, William Herschel discovered that in prismed sunlight the invisible area just beyond red light heats up; In 1801, Johann Wilhelm Ritter searched for "cooling rays" on the other end of the spectrum but instead found it induces a chemical reaction
naw9 TIL that nuclear power prevented an average of over 1.8 million deaths between 1971-2009 as a result of lower air pollution from reduced coal usage according to NASA
aylb TIL The prototype of the chainsaw we are familiar with today in the timber industry was pioneered in the late 18th century by two Scottish doctors as a surgical tool to aid in the process of diffucult childbirth
VMmgB TIL in the 40's hundreds of Guatemalans were infected involuntarily with syphilis by Johns Hopkins University, Bristol-Myers Squibb Co and the Rockefeller Foundation. A court case is underway to this day on behalf of 444 victims resulting in 83 deaths.