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TIL Alexina Morrison, a fugitive from slavery in Louisiana claimed to be a kidnapped white girl and sued her master for her freedom on that ground, arousing such popular feeling against him that a mob threatened to lynch him

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BrnVd TIL at the UK State Opening of Parliament, Yeomen of the Guards (Queen's Bodyguards) still check underneath the House of Lords for traces of Gunpowder. It is a tradition that dates back to Guy Fawkes and the Gunpowder Plot of 1605. Once they get the all clear they have a ceremonial glass of whiskey
wo8RY TIL A ‘lost world’ of early microbes thrived one billion years ago which give clues to a lost world of primitive microbes that once may have populated the world’s oceans and may have eventually given rise to modern plants and animals.
ZEp4 TIL that Portobello, Cremini, and Button (White) mushrooms are all different stages of maturity for the same mushroom.
QND8e TIL that a Canadian senior's living complex saw a petty feud sparked after one elderly man moved in with his young wife. The other residents claimed he violated the age limit, and the couple responded by removing doorknobs, egging cars and exposing an affair between a tenant and one of the owners.
d8WYd TIL male black-widow spiders tend to select their mates by determining if the female has eaten already to avoid being eaten themselves.