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TIL a plague wiped out millions of Native Americans just before the pilgrims came, leaving the new settlers cleared land and fields already planted with corn

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gyY9 TIL courts have ruled that it’s legal for police departments to discriminate against smart people when hiring
wL5eo TIL Many shoe stores in the U.S. during the 1940's-70's had shoe-fitting fluoroscopes, essentially X-ray machines for the feet to see how well a person's foot fit in the shoes they were considering buying.
WkKl9 TIL that cats are attracted to eating spider plant foliage because it is mildly hallucinogenic to them. According to the ASPCA, the plants are non toxic to cats and contain chemical compounds that are said to be related to opium.
1ap8P TIL That Venice Italy is held up by millions of ancient tree poles driven into the mud. They never rot due to the lack of oxygen.
R5oG4 TIL Chlorovirus ATCV-1, an algal virus commonly found in lakes, can infect humans and remain in their mucosal surfaces, where its presence is associated with a modest decrease in cognitive functioning.