› added 5 months ago

22

TIL the reason why William L. Scott was called the "dumbest member of Congress" was due to him denying that he was dumb in a press conference addressing an article written by Nina Totenberg. The article, which did not gain much notice, exploded in popularity, inadvertently proving the statement.

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ZpGBY TIL toilet paper was invented in 1857. Before that early North American colonists used corn cobs. Sailors used ‘tow rag’, which was a long piece of frayed rope that dangled in the water.
JY584 TIL Tom Cruise was diagnosed with dyslexia at 6 yrs old and graduated high school as a functional illiterate, relying on his sister for help with schoolwork. He was in movies like Taps and Risky Business before learning to read in 1986 when he became a scientologist, the year Top Gun was released.
PY6Z TIL that some people, due to a rare genetic mutation, only need to sleep for about four hours a night. Margaret Thatcher, James Franco, and Martha Stewart have all been suspected to have this condition.
LQb0 TIL that Aztecs were making the sharpest blades known to science 2,500 years ago out of obsidian, and, as of relatively recently, the technology is starting to catch on again.
xVWv1 TIL that Cameroon sent $3.77 in relief during the Great Depression to USA. $3.77 then is around $57 in today’s money.