› added 3 years ago

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TIL in 1698, Emperor Peter of Russia created the "Beard Tax". If you paid 60 Rubels, you got given a 'beard token' which you used to prove you had paid. None-payers had their faces shaved off in public.

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5YGVR TIL in 1943 to save copper for WWII production, the US Mint made pennies from steel with a coating of zinc. These pennies had a silver appearance rather than the traditional copper coloring.
D1xyV TIL Douglas Adams came up with the title for The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy while lying drunk in a field near Innsbruck with a copy of The Hitch-Hikers Guide to Europe. Looking up at the stars, he thought it would be a good idea for someone to write a hitchhiker's guide to the galaxy as well.
LQ0NQ TIL Mothers Having Fewer Children is the Primary Cause of Changes in Population Growth
WPEo TIL that in the Star Wars Universe, Ewok Jerky was a popular snack across the Outer Rim.
R7ZAQ TIL that when you hold the Control key and hit the right or left arrow it moves the courser by word and not letter. My life just changed forever!