› added 10 years ago

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TIL that many words used to be spelled phonetically (e.g. debt was ‘det’) until some scholars purposely added silent letters to make them look more like Greek or Latin words, sometimes erroneously.

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MeLd0 TIL that Belarus lost a full 1/4 of its population to World War II
MemRK TIL that Adolf Hitler did not invent concentration camps. They have likely been in use for centuries, as a method to supress/eliminate unwanted elements of society. Documented examples prior to the 1800s are however not easily found.
V41Z TIL that there is an optical illusion called the McCullough Effect that is so powerful, ten minutes of exposure can cause you to see colors that are not there for up to a month.
LQdkv TIL 21 years before “Seinfeld” spoofed attorney Johnnie Cochran with Jackie Chiles, “Sanford & Son” spoofed him with Sonny Cochran.
m1WgR TIL there is desk on the floor of the U.S. Senate has been kept filled with candy since 1965. It’s called the ‘Candy Desk’.