Approximately 40% of the U.S. paper currency in circulation was counterfeit by the end of the Civil War.
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The first telephone book was one page long and had only 50 names in it.
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A monk had once written over a book that contained information about calculus that was written by Archimedes in ancient Greece that could have made us 100 or even 1000 years more mathematically and technologically advanced.
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After Germany surrendered in WW2, people in Moscow partied until the entire city actually ran out of vodka.
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During the Black Plague, it was thought that bad smells were the cause of the plague. "Plague Doctors" therefore wore masks with long beak-like noses stuffed with flowers or smoke to hide the smells.
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Tablecloths were originally meant to serve as towels with which guests could wipe their hands and faces after dinner.
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There's a bar in Ireland (presently named Sean’s Bar) that was opened in 900AD.
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