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TIL Russian has surpassed German the second most used language on the web (behind English)

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dD7Oj TIL about Operation Cottage intended to seize the last enemy stronghold on North American soil from Japanese occupiers in 1943. By the time the island was declared secure, over 300 Allied soldiers lay dead or wounded. There were none Japanese casualties, they abandoned the island 3 weeks prior.
9wOom TIL that the electricity bills of a Japanese bullet train on a 622km (386 mi) journey can be paid off with the ticket income of 16 paying-travelers on its 1,324 seats, or on average, just one passenger in each carriage.
QNxyd TIL when he was an Illinois state legislator, Abraham Lincoln was challenged to a duel by state auditor James Shields. Lincoln insisted on broadswords as the weapon rather than pistols prompting Shields to back out and call for a truce.
AAon TIL Ulrich von Liechtenstein, Heath Ledger’s character in “A Knight’s Tale”, was a real person.
QJXbE TIL the US once printed paper money in cent denominations. Known as 'fractional currency', it was introduced in 1862 because people were hoarding coins for their precious metals. Issued in denominations of 3, 5, 10, 15, 25, and 50 cents, they are still technically legal tender (spendable) today.