› added 5 years ago

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TIL the Comstock act of 1873 labeled contraceptives obscene and carried a $5000 fine or 5 years hard labor for sending information about or contraceptives thru the mail. Abortifacients, obscenity (which includes poopies), sex toys or information concerning topics were included in the patent act.

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poAN TIL the ‘ghost orchid’ has no leaves or stem, and is simply a system of roots when it is not flowering.
OoMl7 TIL of radiosynthesis, a process like photosynthesis that uses the pigment melanin to convert gamma radiation into chemical energy for growth. Radiotrophic fungi were discovered in 1991 in and around Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant.
DQpOJ TIL that the production of The Sound of Music faced opposition from Salzburg city leaders who did not want them staging scenes with swastika banners. However, they relented after director Robert Wise threatened instead to include old newsreel footage featuring the banners.
kP1e TIL Jews arrived in India 2500 years ago and unlike many parts of the world, Jews have historically lived in India without any instances of antisemitism from the local majority populace.
BgpPd TIL "Below the fold" is referring to the bottom half of a newspaper.