› added 7 years ago

486

TIL when Edgar Allen Poe wrote “The Raven”, he initially considered making the poem about a parrot.

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R7KD6 TIL that music icon Curtis Mayfield was quadriplegic for the last 9 years of his life after being struck by falling lighting equipment at a 1990 concert
BggLK TIL James Cameron sold the rights the script of The Terminator for $1, so he could direct it.
d8xxd TIL Charles D Barger was gassed in WWI, received the Medal of Honor and a record 10 Purple Hearts, became a policeman after the war and was shot 5 times during a shootout. Later in life he was shot by a deputy and died from self-inflicted burn injuries sustained during a mental breakdown.
QNMw9 TIL that wild almonds contain deadly amounts of cyanide. The almonds we enjoy today are from a genetic mutation that reduced the production of amygdalin that makes wild almonds bitter and poisonous.
l7vA5 TIL that Magnus Carlsen intentionally plays non-book "inaccuracies" during opening (moves he knows aren't the best), in order to force the game into a non-book position, so his opponents will have to think for themselves instead of going by memorized opening theory.