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TIL an annual celebration held in Yulin, Guangxi, China, by the Chinese during the summer solstice in which festival goers eat dog meat and lychees by boiling them alive, stating the suffering sends adrenaline to the muscles and increases flavor.

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NXwP6 TIL that Thomas Edison and his partner, Edward Johnson, invented the first electric Christmas lights. For Christmas in 1880, Edison dressed his laboratory in lights; and, in 1882, Johnson put electric lights on a Christmas tree. However, lights were expensive, costing about $2,000 per tree in 1901.
Jr1V TIL in 1998, a Georgia high school student was suspended from school after wearing a Pepsi t-shirt on Coke Day. Upon hearing the news, a Pepsi spokesperson said, “Without knowing all the details, it sounds like (he’s) obviously a trendsetter with impeccable taste in clothes.”
YpVOW TIL that the 1968 Flu pandemic killed over 1 million people
KYWN4 TIL that the Makkah Royal Clock Tower stands 601 meters and is the centerpiece of the Abraj Al Bait Complex of seven luxury hotels which overlook the Kaaba and Holy Mosque, the focus of pilgrims performing Umrah and Hajj. The clock hosts the Makkah Time, a time signal to unify the Islamic world.
6EKNY TIL that in the 1904 Olympics marathon various competitors were high and/or mildly poisoned, a competitor came out in 4th after stopping to eat apples and take a nap, and the first black African to compete in the Olympic games ran 2 kilometers out of the course because he was being chased by dogs.