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TIL the Guinness Book of World Records has vehemently refused to validate any attempt at the world record for the longest time spent awake, believing that it's dangerous to human health. The current record is 264 hours or around 11 days, which was set by a high school student as a science project

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D1d9Y TIL Greco-Buddhism, an early synthesis of Western and Eastern ideals, heavily influenced Christianity with ideals such as: respect for life, respect for the weak, rejection of violence, pardon to sinners, tolerance.
5YQa9 TIL J.K. Rowling wrote to Natalie McDonald, a leukemia patient, the ending of The Goblet of Fire a year early. She died before reading the email so Rowling named a character after her. That character was sorted into Gryffindor.
69Drl TIL that, in his championship-winning season of 2016, Formula One driver Nico Rosberg gave up cycling to reduce muscle mass in his legs, in an attempt to gain every possible advantage over teammate and championship rival Lewis Hamilton.
QJ0Va TIL I learned the town of Metropolis, dedicated to all things Superman, has placed a black armband on their 15 foot statue of Superman in honoring the passing of Stan lee.
OGNDe TIL in 2011, Sgt. James Hackemer, who had lost his legs, was allowed to board the 'Ride of Steel' roller coaster at Darien Lake Theme Park in New York. The ride's training manual and posted rules explicitly stated that riders must have two legs. He died after being ejected from the ride.