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TIL That a 1956 report on the CIA’s covert activities found that the CIA was influencing foreign elections as part of their Cold War operations. The report also concluded that the CIA was exerting “almost unilateral” control on US foreign policy.

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rRgr1 TIL that the town of Why, Arizona was originally known as just "Y" due to the Y-shaped intersection of two roads. It changed its name to "Why" due to an Arizona state law requiring town names to be at least 3 letters long.
nW9EG TIL: Gerald Barnbaum posed as a doctor for over 20 years. He killed at least one patient due to not being a real doctor and impersonated different doctors in multiple medical facilities in San Francisco earning $400k by 1991. He even got a position where he did checkups on FBI agents.
NXy4b TIL that when testing a topical patch version of a blood pressure medication, it was found that people grew hair under the patch. The drug was then rebranded as Rogaine. The mechanism by which it promotes hair growth is still not fully understood.
YpRYA TIL Alexis Goggins, a 7 year-old girl, once took 6 bullets meant for her mother. The perpetrator, her mom's ex, fired several shots in her body, but she still managed to survive.
4XgwN TIL Babylonian women had to, by law, consort with 1 stranger who threw a silver coin into their lap while they sat in the "District of Venus". As Babylonian women were usually tall and beautiful, some uglier women had to wait up to 4 years for their coin, before returning home.