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TIL The earliest known life-forms on Earth are fossilised micro-organisms, found in hydrothermal vent precipitates (holes in the sea floor). They date to between 3.77 billion and 4.28 billion years ago.

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yVOgv TIL That Matt Bissonnette, the former DEVGRU operator who, under the pseudonym Mark Owen, wrote the first book about the raid that killed Osama Bin Laden was forced to turn over the almost $7 million he made from the book because he failed to get the book approved before it was published.
XEbW6 TIL John Denver's death was caused by his inability to switch fuel tanks during flight. The selector valve handle should have been located between the pilot's legs, but the builder put it behind the pilot's left shoulder. The fuel gauge was behind the pilot, not visible by him.
OaNg TIL some Matrix fans believe that Neo’s special powers worked in the “real world” because the real world was another simulation, suggesting an Inception-esque “Matrix within a Matrix” system.
BrQYD TIL JRR Tolkien was a supporter of the constructed language Esperanto, believing it could help unite Europe after World War I. He also created new languages like Elvish, calling it his "secret vice", and explained that for him the purpose was aesthetic rather than pragmatic
XEVjj TIL: On 17 April 1955, Einstein experienced internal bleeding caused by the rupture of an abdominal aortic aneurysm. He refused surgery, saying, "I want to go when I want. It is tasteless to prolong life artificially. I have done my share; it is time to go. I will do it elegantly."