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TIL: Thomas Paine, author of Common Sense, the pamphlet that helped gain support for American Independence, was one of the first people to publicly doubt Jesus Christ existed. Prior Christian skeptics simply believed Christ wasn't the son of God.

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mXE TIL that Douglas Adams, author of “The Hitchhikers Guide…” series, only told one other person his secret for choosing the number “42” as the “Ultimate Answer.” That other person is Stephen Fry, who says he’ll take that secret to the grave.
6EJPW TIL about the fictional South American country of "Poyais," created by scam artist Gregor MacGregor in 1821. He invented a diverse economy, a government, a history, a bustling capital city, and even set up embassies in European cities. He made millions scamming investors and enthusiastic immigrants.
X7D6 TIL in 1954, former Australian Prime Minister Bob Hawke won his place in the Guiness Book of World records for drinking 2.5 pints of beer in 11 seconds.
X0vdP TIL that the FDA does not recognize Dr Pepper as a cola, a root beer, or a fruit-flavored soft drink. Instead, Dr Pepper is said to be in a category of its own kind, called "pepper soda", named for the brand.
R7Od9 TIL that the earliest recordable instance of a chokeslam technique was a move made by President Abraham Lincoln.