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TIL that Charles Morton, a 17th century minister and scientist, wrote a treatise on how birds migrated to the Moon and back every winter. Morton believed that they would encounter no air resistance or be affected by gravity, and use excess fat to sustain themselves.

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nRlB TIL that in Deep Blue’s first game against Garry Kasparov, the computer made a move that puzzled the grandmaster so much, it made him believe the machine had superior intelligence. It threw Garry off his game, and ultimately cost him the match. The move was the result of a bug in Deep Blue’s code.
JeWQ TIL a father and young son were kidnapped and brought to a construction site where the kidnappers cut the father’s throat from ear to ear, shot the son 3 times, then the kidnappers buried them. The father escaped, walked ¼ mile, and flagged down a police officer. He survived. The son did not.
MeAP0 TIL the North Hollywood Medical Center, where "Scrubs" was filmed, was also the site of filming for scenes from "Malcolm in the Middle," "Charmed," and "The Sopranos." It was demolished in mid-2011.
LkxVP TIL of the ancient law of General Average. If a ship carrying cargo is required to jettison some of its load to save the rest, the loss of the cargo is to be shared proportionally among interest holders. First written in law in 800BC, it continues to be declared in present-day maritime emergencies.
N7Wke TIL the majority of humans eat rice as a staple crop and 2004 was designated the "International Year of Rice". It was the first time in the history of the United Nations that an entire year was devoted to a commodity.