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TIL Brazilian scrap thieves unknowingly stole highly radioactive caesium-137 from a shuttered hospital. The glowing powder was handled, shown to neighbors as a curiosity and even dabbed on faces like makeup. This event resulted in 4 deaths, including a toddler who ingested the powder. [NSFW]

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gM49b TIL That widespread, angry protests targeting returning Vietnam veterans are largely an urban myth aimed at dividing veterans and other anti-war protesters.
Ap9d TIL that in 1970 due to a wheat production quota dispute between a Farming family in west Australia and the Government, the family declared their land to be independent from Australia and created a legal micro-nation called the Principality of Hutt River which exists till today.
8e0m4 Today I learned the first selfie ever taken was in 1839!
QJLVE TIL that there were over 158,962,555,217,826,360,000 combinations to the Enigma Machine, regarding the codes it could use for messages. Yet, Alan Turing's Bombe machine, through just trial and error, was able to decode messages sent by Germans in 20 minutes.
JLm TIL that early in Jim Carrey’s life, before he had become famous, both he and his family had to live in their Volkswagen van.