› added 1 year ago

30

TIL there used to be a country called “Republic of Dahomey”

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gMNO4 TIL about a slave named Pertinax who became the emperor of Rome. His dad had a wool business that got their family out of slavery and Pertinax went on to become a commander in the Roman military. He was a very good leader and became the successor to Commodus after his untimely assassination.
6yn7 TIL there is an office in Beijing that can literally control the weather
d8RQ TIL that in 2010 we sent 192 000 text messages a second, and that American teen girls send a 100 texts messages a day, on average.
78rkr TIL that Pappy Van Winkle bourbon, which sells for thousands per bottle, was so undesirable for decades that the brand was sold everywhere from "gimmicky decanters shaped like college mascots" in the 1980s to entire privately sold barrels for only $1200 as late as the early 2000s.
XvxQ TIL A male cast member of The Real World: Seattle slapped a fellow cast mate who accused him of being gay. After filming, he was arrested for prostitution, and later came out as gay.