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TIL that for centuries, tuberculosis was thought to be hereditary, or caused by malnutrition, harsh climate, etc. It wasn’t until 1865 that French military doctor Jean-Antoine Villemin proved that TB was an infectious disease by inoculating lab rabbits with material from infected humans and cattle

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rRxVd TIL that Marlon Brando improvised the orange peel scene in the Godfather Part 1. Coppola revealed: "“[Brando] said, ‘Here’s how I play with kids,’ and took an orange peel, cut it into pieces that looked like fangs and slipped them into his mouth.”
wPxE TIL ska and reggae can be traced back to 1 song: Fats Domino’s “Be My Guest”. Radios in Jamaica picked up most R&B stations in the South of the US and this was a particular favorite.
kJQ64 TIL that the scientific name of the jojoba plant stems from a mistake made by a botanist, who misread “Calif.” (on a specimen collection label) as “China”. Thus, he gave it the specific name “chinensis”, incorrectly thinking it was native to China.
oBWGr TIL of ablaut reduplication, an unwritten English rule that makes "tick-tock" sound normal, but not "tock-tick". When repeating words, the first vowel is always an I, then A or O. "Chit chat" not "chat chit"; "ping pong" not "pong ping", etc. It's unclear why this rule exists, but it's never broken
yQyOw TIL that the method of pasteurizing grape juice to halt it from naturally turning into wine has been attributed to a British–American physician and dentist, Thomas Bramwell Welch. Welch was also active in the Underground Railroad and aided in the transportation of freed slaves to Canada.