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TIL that the name Vanessa was invented by Jonathan Swift (author of Gulliver's Travels) as a nickname for his lover Esther Vanhomrigh

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695E7 TIL at one point the sport of Jai Alai was a gambling alternative to horse and greyhound racing in the US and grew a following in Florida. Today only one fronton, the arena in which it's played, remains in the state.
Lxl0 TIL websites know your exact geographical location because your Wi-Fi address has been collected by a Google StreetView car
4XL0o TIL in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, Cuba offered to send the US world-class medical support but America rejected their help due to relations with the regime. Said one frustrated Cuban doctor: “This is not political. This is a humanitarian emergency. People are dying and they need our help.”
AKna TIL that in 2001, Portugal enacted a nationwide law decriminalizing all drugs, including cocaine and heroin. In 2009, the conservative Cato institute called the policy a “resounding success.”
W9nd TIL The true size of Africa.