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TIL George Orwell’s ‘Nineteen Eighty-Four’ and 'Animal Farm’ have together sold more copies than any two books by any other 20th-century author.

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x6Oeg TIL There is an estimated number of 97 walls gates and roads called peace lines in Belfast. 67% of the deaths during the troubles happened within 500 meters of where the peace lines exist
R59Q8 TIL that when mating, the female Serromyia biting midge (no-see-um) drives her tongue like a drill into the male's head, pumping him full of acid. His insides melt, and she sucks him dry. The male's genitals break off, blocking the female from future mating.
1aprd TIL that Soviet forces literally buried their tanks in the ground to turn them into stationary turrets at the Battle of Kursk. And it worked.
d85gZ TIL the novelization of the original "Star Wars" film was called "Star Wars: From the Adventures of Luke Skywalker" and was published before the movie was released. The novel included the first reference to Emperor Palpatine (who wasn't mentioned in the film), and various other discrepancies.
5Vn7r TIL that bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) each have their own distinctive whistle sounds they use to identify each other. When they hear their unique sound called out, they answer back, using their personal theme song as a way to call each other by name.