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TIL that the use of the phrase “Checkmate” is a mispronunciation of the original Persian, “ Shäh mät!”, which means the king is helpless

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N7BXQ TIL Philip Seymour Hoffman didn't want his children to be "Trust Fund Kids" so he didn't make a trust for them, which resulted in a $12 million tax bill that he could have avoided if he made a trust and exercised proper estate planning.
M7DDK TIL Volcanic winter of 536 AD that had consequences on wars, famine and epidemic, having consequences on history, due to climatic change and sun light screening
NXbeQ TIL the earliest-known references to windmills are to a Persian millwright in ad 644 and windmills in Seistan, Persia, in ad 915.
vPdvj TIL in the 1880s, the director of Harvard Observatory was dissatisfied with his team and remarked, "My Scottish maid could do better!" He hired Williamina Fleming, his Scottish maid. For decades, Fleming led a team that made significant discoveries, including white dwarfs and the Horsehead Nebula.
oBDvE TIL The majority of Neanderthals, like Humans, were right-handed