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TIL California once had the largest freshwater lake in the Western USA, Lake Tulare, which at its peak stretched from modern Fresno to Bakersfield. It was ultimately drained as the rivers feeding it were diverted for agriculture in the 19th and 20th century.

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wpZo TIL the Church of Scientology ran several smear campaigns against author Paulette Cooper, one of their critics, including Operation Freakout, the goal of which was to have her admitted to a mental institution. Another, Operation Dynamite, used Cooper’s fingerprints to send bomb threats to the Church
Eg9o7 TIL of the Mesoamerican Long Count Calendar, a continuously running calendar used on monuments, and that started on creation day, August 11, 3114 BCE.
GAWaj TIL for cars built since 1980, "warming them up" on cold days by idling them is unnecessary and shortens the engine's life
wJPJ TIL that it’s the fear of stress, rather than the stress itself, that causes health problems. By viewing stressful situations as a positive and challenging experience, you remove almost all health issues associated with stress.
W9Z4 TIL cats are banned from the world’s northernmost city of Longyearbyen because they pose a threat to the local bird population.