› added 6 months ago

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TIL Geoffrey Everest Hinton, the Godfather of AI, is named after his ancestor George Everest, after whom Mount Everest was named. He also descends from George Boole, one of the fathers of modern computing.

78B6p TIL that pencils were invented after a massive deposit of solid graphite was discovered in England, being the only place in the world with pieces large enough to cut into solid rods. England's monopolies over these lead other countries to smuggle graphite and recycle graphite powder.
KYyDB TIL Due to Chinese cultural beliefs about mental illness and intellectual disability, Chinese people may consider an autistic child as a 'bad seed' and a disgrace to their family. Parents may deny that their child is autistic or keep the autistic child as a family secret
7pL7 TIL North Korea’s Kim Jong-Il claimed he finished a par 72 golf course in just 34 strokes, managing a world record five holes-in-one, making him the best golfer in the history of the world. It was also the first time he has ever golfed.
bnd9 TIL that there is a form of insomnia that is progressive and 100% fatal. Sufferers gradually lose the ability to sleep until it is completely impossible. After several months of no sleep, they become unresponsive, mute, and eventually die.
rRvMo TIL that a cult in Papua New Guinea promised villagers that their banana harvest would increase every time they engaged in public sex. After a villager reported to the polіcе that the cult members had been using thrеats of viоlence to fоrce people to have sex in public, the leader escаped