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TIL No Shave November has a noticeable effect on razor sales

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GYy14 TIL the common fitness target of 10,000 steps/day came from a Japanese pedometer company who gave their product a name that means "the 10,000-step meter” because the Japanese character for “10,000” resembles a person walking: 万. There is no known science behind a goal of 10,000 steps
Y5Ev TIL That during WWII, a research program tried to train pigeons to guide missiles. Pigeons would follow the image, pecking at it, which would move the screen on its pivots. The program was shutdown, with the lead researcher stating:“Our problem was no one would take us seriously.”
wLbeY TIL Human sperm doesn’t wiggle as previously thought, it spins like a “playful otter”
X0LEr TIL that shrapnel is named after Lieutenant-General Henry Shrapnel who was a British artillery officer who invented the shrapnel artillery shell.
QY7e TIL that George Washington originally declined a presidential salary however he ultimately accepted the payment to avoid setting a precedent whereby the presidency would be perceived as limited only to independently wealthy individuals who could serve without any salary.