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If you're new to Now I Know, you'll notice that today's format is different than the rest of the week. On Fridays, I pause to write the "Weekender," my  "week in review" type of thing, or to share something else I think you may find interesting. Thanks for reading! -- Dan

The Week Three People Won a Signed Book

Hi!

A quick programming note — I’m taking Monday off for Presidents’ Day. With that out of the way, some great news: 🎉 I have some winners to announce! 🎉

The Now I Know Super Bowl Contest Winner’

Last Friday, I decided to give away a signed Now I Know book to whoever could predict the final score — or be the closest, I guess — of the Super Bowl. More than 500 of you entered and exactly one person had the Kansas City Chiefs winning the game with 25 points. And amazingly, this person also correctly predicted that the San Francisco 49ers would score exactly 22 points! Congratulations to Matthew A. of the greater Madison, Wisconsin area — you’ve won! I’ll be sending you a book this week or next.

But wait, there’s more!

Referrals Galore!

A few weeks ago, I started up my referral program. If you refer 20 new readers to Now I Know, you also get a free, signed book! (Want to get in on this? Go to the bottom of any email, including this one. It’s there.) Congrats to Jack S. of Minnesota and another 20-person referrer who hasn’t gotten back to me yet. Jack, your book is also on the way in a week or so; to the other person, reply back to the note I sent you and I’ll get yours going, too!

What’s Next

On the referral side, a few people have brought in 5+ new readers, so hopefully, I’ll have more books to give away there. I’m also looking into other giveaways for referrals — any suggestions, let me know! (You can reply to this email, I’ll read it.)

And I’d like to keep giving away books for other reasons, too. I don’t have nearly enough to give away to everyone (and the postage would bankrupt me!), but I’ll probably do something like an Oscars pool or March Madness bracket as those get closer. Any other ideas? Again, reply to this email to let me know.

The Now I Know Week In Review

Monday: The Lion King and the Secret (But Not Actually R-Rated) Message: I knew about this “secret message” for years — the fact that Disney replaced it surprised me.

Tuesday: The Problem With Dark Blue and Yellow License Plates: I really do love license plate trivia.

Wednesday: The Valentine's Cards You Don't Want to Get: “Vinegar Valentines” were once a thing.

Thursday: The Rules of the Roadkill, Smart Phone-Version: Gross. (No judgment.)

And some other things you should check out:

Some long reads for the weekend:

1. “No, Aliens Haven’t Visited the Earth: Why are so many smart people insisting otherwise?” (New York Magazine, 24 minutes, January 2024). This story is (per the NYMag site) free for a limited time, so if you’re interested, read it sooner rather than later.

2. “One Swedish zoo, seven escaped chimpanzees” (The Guardian, 31 minutes, December 2023). The subhead, although let’s face it, the title alone should earn a click: “When the great apes at Furuvik Zoo broke free from their enclosure last winter, the keepers faced a terrible choice. This is the story of the most dramatic 72 hours of their lives.”

3. “We Bought a Team” (Sports Illustrated, 47 minutes, 2015). The subhead: “The author, a longtime SI writer, looked at the revived American Basketball Association and thought, fatefully, Even I could be an owner. The rest is history (with a moose mascot): The crazy, joyful, mournful tale of the Vermont Frost Heaves”

Have a great weekend! I’ll be back on Tuesday.

Dan