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TIL Elytra, AKA the hard casing of beetle wings, were used in Mughal India and then later on in Victorian England to adorn clothing, like an early form of sequins.

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okoY TIL that during the Cold War, Chairman Mao held meetings in his swimming pool to embarrass Nikola Khrushchev, who had to wear a floatie as he couldn’t swim. Khrushchev felt insulted and the incident furthered the deterioration of relations between the Soviet Union and China.
wLrkY TIL In 1959, nine Russian hikers died mysteriously in the Ural Mountains. Known as the "Dyatlov Pass Incident," investigators concluded that the nine died could have died of a "compelling natural force" known as infrasound-induced panic
9YOQr TIL that Plymouth, the capital of the island country Montserrat, has 0 inhabitants. It was built near a volcano which erupted in 1997, substantially burning the town and burying it in ashes. The town was evacuated, but remains the de jure capital, making it the ony ghost-town capital in the world.
KOn6B TIL Cyprus was going to host the first particle accelerator in the Middle East, but ministers chose to spend the money on hosting the Miss Universe pageant instead.
kJB9g TIL Elvis Presley craved the Fool's Gold Loaf, which consists of a hollowed-out loaf of French bread filled with one 1-lb. jar each of creamy peanut and grape jelly and a pound of fried bacon. It packs ~8,000 calories. He and friends once flew from Memphis to Denver to eat 30 of them.