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TIL Toyota used to be called Toyoda but in 1936 the company decided for a new name held a competition and got over 27000 entries. Toyota was chosen because the number of strokes to write Toyota in Japanese (eight) was thought to bring luck and prosperity

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7rxAM TIL The Smallpox virus is the first and only infectious human disease to be completely eradicated; the last known case occurred in 1978. Small quantities of the virus still exist in two secure laboratories though; one in the USA and the other in Russia.
7rQQM TIL that Issac Newton had no sense of humor. Newton is reported to have laughed precisely once in his life – when a friend asked him what use he saw in Euclid's Elements.
ZQop TIL that while trying to present about the disease that would later bare his name, Alzheimer was rushed off stage because the conference attendees were excited to hear the next speaker present about compulsive masturbation.
GxOj TIL the only way the BBC could record its live broadcasts in the 1950s was to point a film camera at a television. Because of this, the only known recording of the landmark sci-fi serial “The Quatermass Experiment” features an insect walking across the screen.
8e0Z8 TIL One of the first diplomatic channels between England and the Ottoman empire was established when Elizabeth I and Safiye, the Sultan's mom, became penpals. Besides talking politics, the pair would exchange lavish gifts, talk about fashion, share beauty tips and exchange their skin care products