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TIL: Benjamin Franklin is credited with one of the first placebo-controlled studies to debunk animal magnetism (1784)

Read more ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

via reddit.com

8eyPZ TIL during World War I, due to concerns the American public would reject a product with a German name, American sauerkraut (fermented cabbage) makers relabeled their product as "liberty cabbage" for the duration of the war.
DQDGr TIL of Gander New Newfoundland: A place that took care of travelers that were diverted after during 9/11
JYjd1 TIL coffee is roasted until it "cracks." First crack (about 385 °F) = light roast, second crack (about 435 °F) = dark roast. If roasted past the second crack, the beans will fully carbonize and may combust.
6EA1W TIL when Mary Queen of Scots was executed, her executioners knelt before her to ask her forgiveness. She granted it saying “I forgive you with all my heart, for now, I hope, you shall make an end of all my troubles.” Unfortunately the headsman missed his first stroke, hitting the back of her head.
188X TIL that a Mongol ruler had “Who ever opens my tomb, shall unleash an invader more terrible than I” inscribed on his casket. On the day a Soviet anthropologist exhumed his body the largest military invasion in history was launched against the USSR.