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TIL Byzantine Emperor Justin I was born a peasant and a swineherd, but rose through the ranks of the army and ultimately became its emperor, in spite of the fact he was illiterate.

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mw5o TIL London is riddled with dozens of ‘Plague Pits’ of the victims of the Bubonic Plague. Some pits are so thick with bodies it was impossible to drill through the mass of skeletal remains during construction of the Tube
R7bl6 TIL flu season is in the winter because the virus is more stable when the air is colder and drier. It was proven in an experiment exposing guinea pigs the flu in various temperatures and humidity.
ADor4 TIL Phil Hendrie was the host of a nationally syndicated talk radio show which featured Phil moderating debates between outrageous guests and irate callers. Unbeknownst to the callers, the guests were all voiced by Phil who seamlessly alternated between his studio mic and a telephone.
8aXA4 TIL there are about 1,500 species of cicadas known. There are those that appear yearly in midsummer, and there are also the so-called "periodic" cicadas. They appear at prime number intervals - 7 years, 13 years and 17 years. Once every 221 years, the 13-year cycle and 17-year cycle cicadas overlap.
kkwB TIL traces of nicotine and cocaine were found in Egyptian mummies. This finding is almost unbelievable considering nicotine and cocaine are indigenous to the Americas.