› added 4 years ago

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TIL America's first recorded murderer was John Billington, an original Plymouth colonist, also a signatory of the Mayflower Compact. He shot a young man who had recently migrated to Plymouth. The motives behind the murder were never recorded so it is still unknown.

16XbV TIL that until 1956, French schoolchildren got served wine with lunch, and apparently beer and cider were available as well. In 1956, they decided giving children alcohol might not be the best idea, after which wine and beer became only allowed for… kids 14 and up.
ky81 TIL of a book entitled Atlanta Nights that was written by a group of sci-fi authors to be intentionally terrible as a test for the publisher PublishAmerica. It included a chapter containing computer generated random sentences and two word for word identical chapters. The publisher accepted it.
jNpep TIL that in 2008 footballer Mathieu Flamini co-founded GF Biochemicals, the first company in the world to mass produce Levulinic acid, a a chemical identified by the US Department of Energy as key to unlocking a greener world. The company has won a John Sime award for most innovative new technology.
GAyKJ TIL: That the Beijing Weather Modification Office were enlisted by the Chinese government to ensure that the 2008 Summer Olympics were free of rain, by breaking up clouds headed towards the capital and forcing them to drop rain on outlying areas instead.
pjgN TIL: There is controversy over China’s top ranking in the international student assessment. Only the three richest Chinese school districts participate in the international student assessment.