› added 9 years ago

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TIL: The algorithms or “black boxes” used by some of the world’s top trading firms were “left to evolve” and have become so advanced nobody fully understands how they work.

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nZMr TIL Australia’s first police force was comprised of the best-behaved convicts
v1EAB TIL: That Melora Hardin, the actress that plays Jan Levinson-Gould on The Office, was originally cast to play Jennifer Parker in Back to the Future. When Eric Stolz was fired and Micheal J Fox was hired for the role, she was replaced because she was too tall for Fox.
J16jv TIL Marie Antoinette never actually said “Let them eat cake”. Instead, the expression was coined by either Jean-Jacques Rousseau or Maria Theresa. Also, in French, the expression is qu'ils mangent de la brioche which literally translates to “let them eat an egg-based bread”
p8nDp TIL in 2007, a North Korean cargo vessel was captured by Somali pirates. Its distress signal was responded to by a nearby US destroyer, which provided medical assistance to injured NK sailors who were able to retake the vessel. It led to an unprecedented statement of gratitude by North Korean media.
M6bb TIL the U.S. government spent years holding fake arrival ceremonies honoring the return of American soldiers killed in WWII, Vietnam, and Korea to American soil, but the planes were actually empty. The ceremonies were known by staff as “The Big Lie.”