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89

TIL that in 1968, science fiction writer and atheist Isaac Asimov published “Asimov’s guide to the Bible”. Asimov treats the secular aspects of the Bible with intellectual instead of theological commentary.

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mxl1Y TIL that a Japanese chemical company once polluted a bay so thoroughly that some sediment contained up to 2 kg of mercury per ton. This concentration made mining economically viable, and eventually the company set up a subsidiary to do just that.
4kADg TIL explorer Captain James Cook was fatally stabbed by a chieftain with a British-made dagger. Cook and his crew had earlier traded the dagger to the local Hawaiians.
1kAP TIL the head-in-the-box ending of “Se7en” was originally rejected by the studio, but David Fincher was accidentally sent the original screenplay with that ending, convincing him to make the movie. The producer still objected to it, but Brad Pitt refused to act in the film unless the scene was kept.
9wxeD TIL about the Gnomes of Wrocław. In the 1980s people in the Polish city began painting gnomes over Soviet propaganda. After the fall of the USSR, a sculptor was hired to place gnomes around the city to honor their history. Others joined in and now there are over 400 gnomes and an annual parade.
0P81 TIL that John Lennon’s son, Julian, didn’t know that “Hey Jude” was about him until 20 years after its debut. Paul McCartney wrote it to comfort Julian during his parents’ divorce, and John Lennon always assumed that it was written about himself.