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TIL that in 1979, a charity special episode of the academic student quiz show "It's Academic" was held between a team of three Democratic U.S. Senators, three Republican U.S. Senators, and three members of the press. The special was handily won by the press team.

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wgg7 TIL the phrase “Always a bridesmaid, never a bride” was popularized by Listerine in ads featuring a lovelorn woman unable to find a husband due to her halitosis. The same ad coined the term “halitosis.”
oL47 TIL in 2016, inspired by an ancient toy called a whirligig, Manu Prakash developed the Paperfuge. The hand-powered centrifuge made of paper, string, and plastic weighs about 2 grams, costs less than a quarter to make, and can spin biological samples in circles at an astonishing 125,000 rpm.
698n7 TIL of Aldgate Pump, a historic water pump held as marking the start of London’s East End. Long famed for its “sparkling, agreeable” water, it was later found that this rich mineral taste came from the flesh and bones of nearby cemeteries leeching into the water. The tainted water killed hundreds.
7rdnM TIL about “spreading depolarization”, a scientific phenomena where the human brain continues to emit brain waves after the heart stops, for several minutes even. When Anne Boleyn was beheaded her detached head reportedly tried to talk.
gM6d8 TIL That we are paid to give plasma but not blood, because people will lie about communicable diseases when paid for blood.