› added 4 years ago

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TIL there are an estimated 40 million slaves in the World today. For context, the trans-Atlantic slave trade was responsible for 12 million slaves over 400 years.

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aw84y Not really, but urine has been a faddish health drink for centuries nonetheless. Celts in the Iberian peninsula gargled it to whiten their teeth about 50 years before Christ; amaroli is a Sanskrit word that refers to urine therapy, which in ancient Ayurvedic practice meant imbibing urine in the morning, mid stream; Proverbs 5:15 is thought to be in support of the act ("Drink waters from thy own cistern, flowing water from thy own well"); and J.D. Salinger famously sipped his own, as did the former prime minister of India, Morarji Desai, who even appeared on 60 Minutes to defend his habit.Click here to launch a gallery about urine therapy.
VBlvB TIL of "Earthquake diplomacy" between Turkey and Greece which was initiated after successive earthquakes hit both countries in the summer of 1999. Since then both countries help each other in case of an earthquake no matter how their relations are.
4AmJ TIL that Olivia Hussey who played Juliet in the 1968 film “Romeo and Juliet” wasn’t allowed to go to the premiere of the film because she was under the age of 18 and there was a nude scene - even though she was the one who was nude.
B00y TIL that Jews and Christians are considered “protected minorities” in Iran, and have seats reserved for them in the Iranian Parliament.
jNDBp TIL that Louis Wain, the Artist from Edwardian England, famous for his psychedelic depictions of cats, was influential in the species' transition from tolerated "mouse catchers" to beloved pets and figures in popular culture.