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TIL O Canada was originally written in 1880, but it didn't become Canada's official anthem until a century later. In the wake of Quebec's first independence referendum, in which 40% voted to leave Canada, the federal government dumped God Save the Queen and replaced it with O Canada

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YpXlv TIL Pasiphaë, mother of the Minotaur and wife to King Minos, placed a fidelity charm on Minos that would cause him to ejaculate serpents, scorpions, and centipedes, killing any unlawful concubine he laid with.
69yPY TIL In November 2024, The Taklimakan Desert, known as the "Sea of Death," has been completely encircled with a sand-blocking green belt stretching 3,046 kilometers, marking the completion of this Chinese government project spanning over 40 years
JYkM8 TIL in 2005 a Swedish ISP was sued by an anti-piracy group (supported by Paramount, EMI, and Sony) for copyright infringement. An internal investigation revealed that the incriminating material had been planted by insiders hired by the anti-piracy group. A deal was struck and the case was dropped.
WkaY8 TIL “Infantry” sounds like “infant” as typically in ancient times an army’s infantry consisted of soldiers too young or too inexperienced to ride a horse and be part of the cavalry.
dDN1j TIL the Isle of Man has the world’s oldest continuous parliament—Tynwald, founded in 979 A.D. It’s a self-governing Crown Dependency with 85,000 people, it is not part of the UK or EU. They recognize King Charles III as "Lord of Mann".