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TIL the Michelin Man’s ‘real’ name is Bibendum, and the reason he’s white is because he was created before carbon was added as a preservative and a strengthener to the basic rubber material. Before 1912, tyres were a gray-white or light and translucent-beige colour.

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ADZOn TIL that the SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) virus is so infectious that one man in Hong Kong infected 183 people in 8 appartment buildings with one horriffic bowel movement, causing a plume of aerosolised faeces to circulate through the ventiltion system and outside on the wind.
gM1AW TIL that in 1987, Fred Rogers visited the then-Soviet Union to film a segment for both his show, "Mister Rogers' Neighborhood" and "Good Night, Little Ones!", Russia's longest-running children's program. Rogers was the first American to appear on the latter show.
J9Av TIL a prison in Oregon had its windows sandblasted after residents complained that prisoners had better ocean views than the tax paying citizens.
ZonY TIL smoking scorpions to get high is a growing problem in Pakistan. The high lasts around 10 hours and supposedly makes everything look like it’s “dancing.” The scorpions can be smoked straight or mixed with tobacco or hash.
neVO7 TIL The famous painting of a dog looking down a gramophone funnel, used as a logo by various companies, was inspired by the artists dog, Nipper. He inherited the animal from his dead brother, and noted that Nipper would look down a gramophone when a recording of his dead owner’s voice was played.