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TIL: Rum is subsidized by US taxes

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16wrP TIL The Big Ben's unique tone is because the bell had cracked in 1859, barely two months after its inauguration. The bell is since oriented in such a way the hammer doesn't strike the 'crack'
R7LVw TIL that, when World War 2 began, the US had the 12th largest army (behind Brazil) and the 18th largest air force in the world. By summer 1944, we were building bombers at the rate of one per hour.
yLNX TIL movie studios hire a man w/a computer program that will predict a movie’s box office. According to his algorithm, actors make no real difference in earnings EXCEPT Will Smith, Johnny Depp, and Brad Pitt who all improve box office numbers.
LxMd TIL: Before medical science discovered how the circulatory system functioned, people believed that a vein ran directly from the fourth finger on the left hand to the heart. This is why people wear their wedding ring on this finger.
jPEX TIL that to pass the “Bechdel test”, a movie must have 1) at least two named women 2) who talk to each other 3) about something other than a man. So far, only 3807 movies have passed.