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TIL: Cat burning was a form of entertainment in 17th century France; people used to gather dozens of cats in a net and hoist them high into the air from a special bundle onto a bonfire

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XE1GX TIL there are dozens of treatments more effective than the 12 steps of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), which as a religious organization mentions God in 5 of its steps, has its own "bible", and believes that people who fail the program were born incapable of being honest with themselves.
MekQ7 TIL that toxoplasma gondii is a parasite that can alter human behaviour and reaction time causing an increasing in accidents and neurotic behaviour the parasite enters humans via a cat host in which it can sexually reproduce in the gut
gr0Ay TIL that the hagfish is the only known vertebrate animal with a skull but no spine. Instead it has separate bone sections in its back that function as a spine. They're also capable of absorbing nutrients from the surrounding water directly through their skin.
8aPG4 TIL that one of the conspirators of Franz Ferdinand's assassination swallowed a cyanide pill and jumped into a nearby river after a failed attempt to kill Ferdinand. The cyanide pill was expired and only made him sick, and the river was only 10cm deep. He was detained seconds later by authorities.
goN4 TIL scientists in Boston have discovered that it may be possible to learn complex tasks, such as mastering Kung-Fu or the Piano, with little to no conscious effort, just like in The Matrix.