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TIL only 9 US military officers have held the 5-star rank. It was created during WW2 because US officers were often commanding allied officers of higher rank. A 5-star officer cannot retire and remains on active duty for life. It was retired in 1981 on the death of General Omar Bradley.

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ZNyQ TIL programmers for Atari in the late 70s went to the CEO of the company asking for royalties and their names be included on the boxes, when he turned them down they went and formed their own company – Activision
Br0r TIL upon its discovery by Marie and Pierre Curie in 1898, the element polonium was named after Poland (in latin Polonia) to shed light on the countries lack of independence. It may be the first element named to highlight a political controversy.
LkwRZ TIL that every single actress who has won an Academy Award has played a character working in the sex trade industry. 95% played prostitutes, while about 5% played someone working in or related to the sex trade industry.
6EYEJ TIL Helicoprion is a genus of extinct shark whose fossil specimens reveal spirally arranged clusters of the individuals' teeth called "tooth whorls" that resemble our modern circular saw blades.The shark's blade, connected to cylindrical muscle tissue, would shred prey into small, bite-sized pieces.
eJN5 TIL that a person can actually die from insomnia. It starts with only getting a few hours of sleep and progresses, eventually producing psychosis and becoming fatal