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TIL that there is a shrine located in Kyoto, Japan dedicated to the 38,000 severed noses of Korean troops and civilians. Japanese warriors would traditionally bring back body parts of enemies as proof of their deeds. A total of 214,752 heads were brought back after the second invasion of Korea.

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Z88A4 TIL In 1903 after camping with John Muir, Teddy Roosevelt established Yosemite as a national park to preserve its "majestic beauty all unmarred." As President, TR signed into existence four other national parks, 18 national monuments, 55 national bird & wildlife refuges, and 150 national forests.
vAaR TIL of Najih Al-Baldawi, an Iraqi man who sacrificed himself by hugging a suicide bomber as they detonated inside a shrine, reducing the force of the blast and saving dozens of people.
0wx7y TIL that in 1990, Katya Mayorova was crowned as "Miss KGB", the world's only holder of a security services beauty title. She was described as "wearing her bulletproof vest with an exquisite softness", with one of her many charms "her ability to deliver a karate kick to her enemy's head"
5YJgn TIL a mere 12,000 years ago, a species closely related to the modern humans had been living on an Indonesian island. They used fire and stone tools of the sophisticated upper paleolithic tradition, yet were only about 3.5 feet tall and weighed around 25kg (55lb).
X0p46 TIL of operation Abscam: an FBI sting operation in the late 70s which resulted in the resignation of 1 US senator and 5 US congressmen and the expulsion of a 6th congressman for corruption. Congress made it impossible for the FBI to run similar sting ops in the future (Civiletti Guidelines, 1981)