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TIL the silent P in the word "ptarmigan" has absolutely no reason to be there. The bird's name comes from the Gaelic "tàrmachan" ("croaker"), but in 1684 the Scottish naturalist Robert Sibbald decided to add a p in front to make the word look more Greek.

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7rnob TIL that Isaac Newton at height of his career gave up science to run the mint in London, where he spent the rest of his life chasing counterfeiters and dabbling in alchemy and mysticism. He died in 1727 at age 84, apparently a virgin.
W7o9X TIL The Last Supper by Leonardo da Vinci is not in a frame. It's painted on the wall of a dining room for monks in Milano.
aZGo TIL that the first African-American whose name appeared on ballots as a candidate for President of the United States was Clennon King in 1960. He was called the Black Don Quixote for his efforts and was committed to an insane asylum in 1958 for applying to the University of Mississippi.
4X5Bw TIL weed smoking substantially elevates heart rate and risk of heart attack
LQM6d Today I learned the Panhellenic Games is the collective term for four separate sports festivals held in ancient Greece. The four Games were the Olympic, Pythian, Nemean and the Isthmian games.