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TIL that Tuvalu (a Pacific island nation) leased the rights to the .tv domain in 1999 for $50 million; the deal trebled their entire national income, and one of the first things they bought was a membership in the United Nations

Read more theguardian.com

via reddit.com

8av48 TIL of "chicken shit bingo", a weekly event at the Little Longhorn Saloon in Austin Texas. Participants purchase a ticket which corresponds to a random number on the table. If the chicken poops on your number you win a cash prize.
x4L1 TIL that the Guinness Book of Records holds the record for being the book most often stolen from public libraries.
9Ylep TIL that microwaves actually heat things by violently shaking the water molecules inside of the object so fast that the friction causes it to heat up.
VMr74 TIL 20 people were killed at an Italian ski resort in 1998 when a US Marine Corps aircraft, flying over 1,600 feet below minimum height standards, cut the cable supporting their gondola. The pilot was acquitted of manslaughter, and the United States reimbursed 75% of Italy's victim compensation fund
wL8A6 TIL Buzz Aldrin, the second man on the Moon, Mother's maiden name was Moon.