› added 4 years ago

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TIL that we don't know how the great French mathematician Adrien-Marie Legendre really looked like, because the only surviving portrait of him is an angry face in a caricaturist's work. For 200 years, the portrait of a French politician was wrongly attributed to him and used in old textbooks.

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GYjQG TIL that Chrissie Hynde of the Pretenders, Joe Walsh of The Eagles and Gerald Casale and Bob Lewis of Devo were all eyewitnesses to the Kent State Massacre.
loyEA TIL the infamous "Year without a Summer" after the Tambora eruption in 1815 led directly to the invention of the bicycle, as people were forced to eat horses and other farm animals due to failing crops. They were called Laufmaschine or "dandy horses" and propelled by Flintstone-style foot power.
YvdW TIL Gary Condit was not only cleared of having any involvement in the murder of Chandra Levy, but the real murderer has been caught and was found guilty back in 2010.
dgoK TIL that Saddam Hussein’s love of a grilled fish dish called masgouf caused the U.S. to discover Saddam Hussein’s hiding place in 2003.
loBA1 TIL In 2009, a drunk New Zealander lost a poker bet and had his name changed to "Full Metal Havok More Sexy N Intelligent Than Spock And All The Superheroes Combined With Frostnova". He found out that it was accepted 5 years later after receiving a confirmation letter.