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TIL that Duck Hunt works by flashing the screen black when you shoot, except where there are ducks, and a photodiode in the barrel of the gun either picks up the lit area where the ducks are, or it doesn’t, which determines whether your shot hit or missed.

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1aoDP TIL Captive Giant Pandas were shown a video of pandas mating in the wild, in an effort to get them to mate in the female's 3-day breeding cycle. When "Yongyong" tried to mount "Ke Lin", she fought him off; but after Ke Lin viewed the "panda pornography," the pair mated successfully.
ep7b6 TIL the tradition of sending holiday cards started because Henry Cole wanted “a convenient way for him to speak to his many friends and associates without having to draft long, personalized responses to each.”
KYvK4 TIL Theosophy, founded in the late 19th century by Helena Blavatsky in the US, is a religious movement and part of Western esotericism. It draws from Blavatsky's writings, older European philosophies like Neoplatonism, and Indian religions such as Hinduism and Buddhism.
eE5k TIL that “jaywalking” used to be the normal thing to do - automobile companies invented the term to shame people off the road to make room for cars (and car sales).
8ajKP TIL the deadliest animal on Earth is the mosquito and they kill around 725,000 people annually. Humans are the second deadliest, killing 475,000 and they are followed by snakes with 50,000 and dogs with 25,000. On the other end of the spectrum sharks only kill about 10 people annually.