› added 11 years ago

82

TIL that Stephen Hawking was told he had two years to live by his doctors - back in 1963.

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7onx TIL Coca Cola still uses coca leaves in its production and is the only company in the US allowed by the DEA to import the leaves. More than a quarter ton of cocaine is extracted from these leaves each year and sold to a St. Louis company for ‘medicinal’ uses.
Y7LXv TIL that Gerard Way started My Chemical Romance after seeing 9/11 happen on his way to work in New York City. Seeing thousands of people die in front of him made him reassess his life and decide to take a chance on a music career.
8e8Z8 TIL that the word "fascinate" derives from the ancient Roman practice of using a representation of the divine penis (a fascinare) to perform magic.
gEG7 TIL there is a grove of 16 olive trees in Lebanon that are at least 5,000 years old. They still produce olives and you can purchase olive oil made from them.
JkLB TIL of The Great Stink of London, where the smell of human shit in the River Thames was so bad that it halted parliament. 250 tons of limes were used to mask the odor.