› added 9 years ago

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TIL that Volvo engineer Niels Bohlin invented the three point seatbelt, but Volvo gave away the patent to other manufacturers because it had more value as a free life saving tool.

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0G8M TIL there are 80,000 SWAT raids on American homes per year
kJVn7 TIL Gila Monster venom contains compounds structurally similar to the active ingredient in Ozempic, and this discovery directly lead to the development of all Semiglutide based medications
wJbY TIL In 1669, King Louis XIV banned the use of pointed dinner knives to discourage violent stabbing and tooth-picking at the dinner table, which eventually lead to the popularity of the modern butter knife.
Jm7j TIL After buying out the McDonalds brothers, Ray Kroc was angry that the deal did not include the original McDonalds so he forced the McDonald brothers to change the name of the establishment (it was changed to the big M) and opened a McDonalds a block away and the put the big M out of business.
D1blY TIL that during the 50s til 70s the UK Foreign Office had a program of destroying or hiding files from its ex-colonies, as they gained independence, if they that could embarrass the UK government. This happened in over 20 countries and included documents pertaining to torture and racial biases.