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TIL Nasir ad-Din Tusi, a Persian polymath, developed a theory of evolution by natural selection 600 years before Darwin. He wrote that hereditary variability is the leading force of evolution, and that organisms which can change faster are ‘more variable’, thus giving them an advantage over others

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rN4Qx TIL that the first use of an external defibrillator was on a 14-year-old boy in 1947. These early defibrillators used alternating current that was transformed from 110–240 volts available in the line, up to between 300 and 1000 volts, to the exposed heart by way of "paddle" type electrodes.
m7aY TIL that the 12th Doctor (Peter Capaldi) sang lead and played guitar in the 80s punk rock band Dreamboys. Their drummer was Late Late Show host Craig Ferguson.
PYoPn TIL In stocks, being "short" a stock means you have sold a borrowed share, in hopes that it gets cheaper. You owe a share back, but you are "short" it until you buy it back to return to the lender.
x66AB TIL a Sitting US Senator Was Killed During the Civil War While Commanding Troops
4xxN TIL National Geographic hires an archivist who has worked by himself in the magazine office basement for over 30 years. He has handled hundreds of thousands of photographs and is responsible for about eight million images in the vintage collection