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TIL That the French philosopher and mathematician Descartes was hired as a tutor by the Queen of Sweden, who insisted on philosophy lessons at 5 in the morning. Within a year of walking through the Swedish cold every morning, Descartes caught pneumonia and died.

Brjay TIL that Nintendo created an entire factory for the sole purpose of creating Virtual Boy consoles. It expected to sell 1.5 million units of the Virtual Boy within its first year. The Virtual Boy sold a total of 770,000 units during its entire lifetime. It is the company's worst-selling console.
pYd4Q TIL the Ampex corporation in the 1950s sold the first 8 track recorder machine to musician Les Paul (solid body electric guitar pioneer). It was installed in Paul's home studio in 1957 for $10,000 which was roughly three times the US average yearly income in 1957 and equivalent to $107,000 in 2023.
ynx8 TIL before 9/11, the credits of Rambo III dedicated the movie to the ’[..] brave Mujahideen fighters of Afghanistan.’ Now it’s dedicated to the gallant people of Afghanistan.
4XeLg TIL that after Chicago officials failed to capture a rogue alligator for 8 days, Chicago hired Florida Man who caught it in less than 24 hours; locals dubbed the alligator "Chance the Snapper"
GYv94 TIL about the Kindertransport, an organized rescue program for Jewish children that was supported by the British government in the months leading up to World War II. Nearly 10,000 Jewish children were taken in, many of whom were the only members of their families to survive the Holocaust.