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TIL there is a chemical compound 1000 times hotter than capsaicin, resiniferatoxin, a naturally occurring chemical found in cacti. Ingestion can cause severe swelling, permanent loss of sensation, serious injury, or even death.

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awGpA TIL A common belief in alchemy, kabbalah, renaissance magic and medieval esoterism in general was that birds spoke the perfect divine language used by Angels and/or Adam which was key to obtaining perfect knowledge.
je4X TIL Ancient Romans would shower daily, until the rise of Christianity, which made good hygiene a religious taboo
L0kP TIL that hot dog buns originated because customers were not returning gloves loaned out by the concessionaire to handle the sausages
LkAd9 TIL In the 1960s Soviet Russia trained an all-female space squad in absolute secrecy. One of these cosmonauts — Valentina Tereshkova — became the first woman in space. But the existence of the female program was classified. Moscow shut the space squad down, and hid its existence for decades.
Zra4 TIL that the “Great Pyramid” was constructed using approx. 2.3 million stones, each weighing between 2.5-15 tons. In order to finish the “Great Pyramid” in 23 years, the workers would have to set a block every 2.5 minutes, every day of the week for 23 years using no wheels, pulleys or work animals.