› added 5 years ago

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TIL Americans spent about $150b on cocaine, heroin, marijuana, and meth in 2016, about the same amount they spent on alcohol.

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via reddit.com

mxWaM TIL that, whilst botulism affects 200 Americans every year, Avian botulism kills vast swathes of birds, with single outbreaks killing ca. 50,000 birds and several outbreaks occurring per year
8eBwa TIL Warren Beatty and Shirley MaClain are brother-sister
E1Xmd TIL only 15 senators have been expelled, 14 were during Civil War for supporting Confederacy.
4aaX TIL a tomato plant was found on the 40 year old volcanic island, Surtsey. Scientists were boggled as to how it got there. Turns out, it was from a scientist taking a dump, subsequently growing the plant.
WkpGN TIL: George Lucas traded 2.5% of "Star Wars" ticket sales with Steven Spielberg for 2.5 % of "Close Encounters of the Third Kind" sales. Lucas did this because he was not sure that Star Wars would be profitable. Spielberg ended up making $40 Million from Star Wars.