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TIL When the Ottoman empire attacked Skenderbeg’s town (1450), he put candles on the horns of goats and sent them into the mountains at night. As the Ottomen attacked a herd of goats, Skenderbeg defeated their massive army from by a rear attack.

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YREv TIL that the last meal is based on a superstition from pre-modern Europe. By accepting the last meal, the condemned was believed to forgive the executioner, the judge, and witness(es). This would prevent the condemned from returning as a ghost to haunt those responsible for their killing.
KYLwJ TIL that in 1518, a "dancing plague" broke out in Strasbourg, where hundreds of people danced uncontrollably for days, with some dancing until they collapsed or died from exhaustion.
BrjVe TIL For the movie Star Wars, the sound designer for the Stormtrooper's blasters came up with the sound of the blaster during a family backpacking trip. He hit the guy-wire of an AM radio transmitter tower with a hammer and recorded the sound with a microphone close to the impact.
x8Mg TIL distance-running has skyrocketed in popularity 3 times in modern history, each time in the midst of a major crisis: during the Great Depression, in the 1970s during a recession, race riots, assassinations, and Vietnam, and 1 year after 9/11 it became the fastest-growing outdoor sport in the US.
GOp5 TIL Sweden’s tourist association has create a “Call a Swede” phone number which is assigned to random de facto ‘ambassadors’ with no training or expectations. The goal is to provide an unfiltered view of Swedish life.