› added 4 years ago

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TIL that American president Zachary Taylor (in office 1849-50) fell ill and died after consuming copious amounts of raw fruit and iced milk, while attending 4th of July celebrations during a fund-raising event at the Washington Monument then under construction.

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oRBGE TIL The Blue Angels, the U.S. Flight Navy Demonstration Squadron, formed in April 1946 as the Navy Flight Exhibition Team. They changed their name after seeing the New York nightclub, The Blue Angel. The team was first introduced as the Blue Angels during an air show in July 1946.
n1bB TIL: The FTC says all Homeopathic “medicine” must label that they do not work.
Lob9 TIL The first Playboy Mansion became a student dormitory after the company donated it to the Art Institute of Chicago. The building was renamed Hefner Hall.
PYLdV TIL that the Peloponessian War between Athens and Sparta only ended in 1996 - no treaty was signed when the fighting ended in 404 BC, so 25 centuries later the mayors of the cities signed a pact saying "Today we express our grief for the devastating war between the two cities and declare its end"
YG6Z TIL In 2004 a 13yo girl was walking to school but was shot and wounded at a distance by IDF soldiers. As she cowered, wounded behind a rock an Israeli captain went up to her and emptied 17 bullets from his rifle into her at point blank range. The captain was exonerated and later promoted to a Major.