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190

TIL of Swansea Jack, a black retriever that lived in Newfoundland, Canada in the 1930’s. The dog is credited with rescuing an estimated 27 people from drowning during his seven-year lifetime. He was named ‘Dog of the Century’ in 2000

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mLPo TIL that MIT students must pass a swim test to graduate. The director of phys ed said swimming is “…a self-survival skill. Research shows that most drownings occur in families where parents don’t know how to swim.”
BrORx TIL there is no evidence that the phrase "May you live in interesting times" is an ancient Chinese curse.
X0JXE TIL that chicken McNuggets (introduced nationwide only in 1983) come in 4 shapes: the bell, the bow-tie, the ball and the boot. McDonalds states "The 4 shapes we make Chicken McNuggets in was the perfect equilibrium of dipability and fun. 3 would’ve been too few. 5 would’ve been, like, wacky."
p8lgZ TIL that the official state vegetable of Oklahoma is the watermelon.
Wk5nA TIL fireworks were invented in China sometime between 200 BC and 900 AD. It is believed Marco Polo brought fireworks from China to Europe in 1295, and the global popularity exploded after that. In 1830, colors were added in Italy by adding different metallic powders.