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TIL about the history of the Enigma machine, a cryptographic device used by the German military during World War II.

Read more history-computer.com

via reddit.com

rRjBx TIL roughly 70% of businesses in Sicily still pay protection money to the Sicilian Mafia.
dD5WB TIL in Nevada, the ballot has included "None of These Candidates" since 1976, giving voters a unique way to protest their choices. It can’t win an election, but in 2014, it received more votes than a major-party candidate in a statewide race, allowing voters to express their dissatisfaction.
xVWZg TIL a reason that jazz flute players wore "soul patches" (soul patches are a bit of facial hair left below the lower lip and popularized as a general style by jazz musicians) is because they disliked the feeling of the flute against clean-shaven skin below the lower lip
KEDG TIL in 2005 a man managed to trade a red paperclip for a house by making a series of swaps. Along the way he managed to get a musician a contract, met Alice Cooper and hosted “Saskatchewan’s biggest housewarming party, ever.”
E1g5o TIL butterscotch is made with butter and brown sugar. Toffee is made with the same ingredients, but cooked longer.