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TIL that Jane Minor, a slave born in 1792, was freed due to her medical work during an epidemic in 1825. She spent her life buying the freedom of other slaves. She freed at least sixteen, some costing over $2000, on a salary of around $2-$5 per medical visit.

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KOZ4R TIL that the dust storm that sets off the events in the film "The Martian" isn't plausible because the atmosphere on Mars is about 1% as dense as Earth's and the winds in the strongest Martian storms top out at about 60 miles per hour, unlikely to tip or rip apart major mechanical equipment.
6A0l TIL that the term “debugging” actually originated, and was popularized by Grace Hopper when her associates discovered and removed an actual moth that was stuck inside a relay of the Harvard Mark II, impeding its performance.
p8pMG TIL the four-term Democratic governor of Alabama, George Wallace, famous for his hard-line segregationist views and his four presidential campaigns, renounced his past racial views and ran for his final term in 1982, winning with over 90% of the Black vote.
Oob81 TIL that in some cases it is better that a single product design dominates a market for a short period of time, regardless of relative quality (ex. iPod, Blu-Ray, VHS). "Dominant design" allows for relatively low-risk improvement of existing designs, increasing the rate of technological advancement.
p0QG TIL during the American Revolution, many untrained American soldiers used bayonets to cook meat over fires rather than using them for close combat. After receiving bayonet combat training from a Prussian general, the American Army was able to win an entire battle without firing a shot