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TIL W. E. B. Du Bois envisioned "an Encyclopedia Africana," named like the Encyclopædia Britannica. Du Bois envisioned a scientific and comprehensive work on Africa and Africans that would refute the Enlightenment notion of blacks as devoid of civilization. Due to lack of support, the project died

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9YJgX TIL 50 to 85 percent of oxygen on Earth comes from the ocean, mainly from phytoplankton.
bjmQ TIL that only 17% of paid clinical trials in the US had their results published in the time required by law. Not publishing all trials allows drug makers to hide unflattering results, and helps medicines look safer and more effective than they really are.
9EmX TIL Google hired a Camel to map a desert for Google StreetView
VBErZ TIL about the McTrain, McDonald’s attempt in the '90s to turn dining service cars on German trains into mini restaurants. The cars had deep fryers, coffee machines, soda fountains, water heaters, and a 269-square-foot kitchen.
jNA5v TIL the phrase "don't look a gift horse in the mouth" comes from the fact that a horse's age and health can be estimated buy examining the number and quality of their teeth.