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TIL that there is a current scientific hypothesis that the sun has a companion which is currently about 1-1.5 light years away. It is believed that it has an elliptical orbit which, every 26 million years, sends matter towards the Earth causing mass extinction events. Its nickname, the “Death Star.”

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d85y7 TIL of a Welsh village Llanfair­pwllgwyngyll­gogery­chwyrn­drobwll­llan­tysilio­gogo­goch named as a publicity stunt in 1869 to give the railway station the longest name in Britain. It means: St Marys Church in the Hollow of the White Hazel Near to the Rapid Whirlpool of Llantysilio of the Red Cave.
07J1 TIL In 2004, a hacker from Germany revealed Half Life 2’s source code andValve tried to arrest him by getting him to come to the states for a fake interview.
VMPxD TIL Insulin shock therapy was used as treatment for schizophrenia. Scientists believed it could jolt the brain out of mental illness or induce the restoration of the normal function. In reality the treatment caused brain damage and a "loss of tension and hostility" that was viewed as therapeutic.
rNmWd TIL the oyster mushroom is carnivorous and preys on nematode worms to supplement its nitrogen intake. It can paralyze nematodes within a few minutes of contact, and then sucks their innards out through their mouths
GYg9E TIL: Benjamin Franklin was the originator of raising taxes to pay for lower income families to do public service for a wage. City sweepers were the original public service job of the 1700s.