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TIL A study of robot aesthetics has found non-human-like machines gather positive emotional responses from viewers, while humanoid objects that imperfectly resemble human beings produces feelings of eeriness and revulsion in observers. This dip in positive responses is called the Uncanny Valley.

8ab9V TIL about Pedro Alonso Nino, a Black-Spanish explorer who piloted The Santa Maria on Columbus’s first voyage to America. He comes from the famed Nino Brothers. The La Niña, another of Columbus ships was actually owned by Pedro’s brother, Juan.
aw6QZ TIL Jeremy Soule was inspired to write music for TES: Oblivion which reflects the human condition and the beauty of life, after being involved in a car crash which he was lucky to survive.
LkNwQ TIL In 2009, Stephen Hawking threw a party at the University of Cambridge, complete with balloons, hors d'oeuvres and iced champagne. Just as expected, nobody showed up because he only sent out invitations after his party was over. It was, he said, "a welcome reception for future time travelers,".
x661o TIL Dr. James Parkinson, whose study of 'The Shaking Palsy' resulted in it being named after him, narrowly avoided being dispatched to Australia in irons after being accused of plotting to shoot King George III with a poisoned dart
a5Vy TIL Braille was based on a tactile military code called night writing, developed in response to Napoleon’s demand for a means for soldiers to communicate silently at night and without a light source. It proved to be too difficult for soldiers to recognize by touch, and was rejected by the military