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TIL Sunflower (Helianthus tuberosus) root, also called Jersualem artichokes or Sunchokes, are native to North America. Native Americans were first to cultivate sunflower roots for food. Resists cold, drought, wind. The roots contain inulin, which is firmly established to decrease blood cholesterol.

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yVjb8 TIL of gamma-ray bursts, immensely energetic explosions that occur when a giant star implodes and becomes a black hole. It can release as much energy in a few seconds as the Sun will in its entire 10-billion-year lifetime. It may also have caused a mass extinction on Earth 440 million years ago.
D1NrP TIL that two MIT Scientists successfully planted a false memory into a mouse (Mouseception). When set in a certain box, the mouse freezes in terror, recalling that it receives a shock in this box, when this never happened. This research may lead to new treatments for Depression or Alzheimer's, etc.
e0KYk TIL of the "poison squad": a group of young government employees in the early 1900s who, in order to test the safety of common food additives of the time, purposely ate ingredients including formaldehyde (embalming fluid) and borax (laundry detergent). Their work led to food labeling requirements.
rNwoM TIL of Operation Starvation, a March 1945 aerial mining campaign against Japan that was more effective against naval shipping than all other campaigns (including submarines) combined.
OGlBL TIL Uday Hussein murdered his father’s valet with an electric carving knife in front of guests at a party