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TIL That the Maya civilization used chocolate as money. Chocolate—in the form of fermented and dried cacao beans—was "almost certainly" a key Maya currency. Running out of it may have played a role in their downfall.

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pZ6G TIL American schoolchildren rank 25th in math and 21st in science out of the top 30 developed countries….but ranked 1st in confidence that they outperformed everyone else.
yenM TIL Hunter S. Thompson appeared outside Jack Nicholson’s home on the night of Nicholson’s birthday. He set off a high-powered spotlight and gunfire and played a tape of animal cries through an amplifier to awaken him. Thompson then left a freshly-cut elk’s heart on Nicholson’s door as a joke.
awM0N TIL Astronauts often see random flashes of light in space, even through closed eyes - this is caused by cosmic rays passing through their eyes or optical nerves. Scientists think the light is either generated by Cherenkov radiation or by the ray being powerful enough to activate the optical nerve.
l7MEN TIL that Satoshi Tajiri, the creator of Pokémon, once said that his creation was inspired by his childhood hobby - collecting insects. He hopes to create a similar experience where players can collect, grow and exchange their own virtual creatures.
6mk8 TIL that when people die in huge crowd ‘stampedes’, it’s rarely from being trampled, it’s from being crushed and suffocated (while still standing) by densely packed bodies.