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TIL the infamous Donner Party was tricked into taking a new “shortcut” by a trading post that desperately needed the route to succeed. They even hid letters left to warn that the route was hostile and deadly. The “shortcut” delayed the Party by a month, stranding them in the mountains as winter hit.

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gM8my TIL Cuddling has about the same effect on the brain as taking painkillers
YpBar TIL that in 1928, New York Governor Al Smith ran for president with the slogan, "Make your wet dreams come true," advertising his opposition to prohibition.
7rZOM TIL that the Japanese 1 Yen coin is made from Aluminium and is so light that it can float on water.
LNdQ TIL: Fingers prune underwater not because of them absorbing the water or washing away the oil, but because of an evolutionary trait caused by the brain to enhance the grip of your fingers underwater.
npxY TIL an early Soviet space station, Salyut 3, was fitted with a space cannon which was test fired at the end of the stations operations.