• How 19th-Century Paleontologist Mary Anning's Name Ended Up On Mars

    Anning, without formal education or training, was integral to the early days of "natural science." She not only transcended class barriers to eventually catch the attention of prominent individuals such as English geologist Adam Sedgwick, but also gender barriers that deemed her ventures unheard of.

    By Richard Milner December 11th, 2020 Read More
  • The Surprising Number Of Presidents Mathew Brady Photographed

    Today, nearly everyone has a smartphone with a camera. You've probably taken hundreds of photos in your lifetime, if not thousands. But, in the 19th century, photography was a difficult art that required patience and expertise. Few early photographers were as successful as Mathew Brady.

    By Daniel Leonard December 11th, 2020 Read More
  • Mount Everest Is Higher Than You Thought

    Nepal announced in 2012 that they would perform their own mission to check Everest's height; they were spurred to take action after a destructive 7.8 magnitude earthquake in 2015, after which scientists disagreed whether or not the quake had affected the mountain's size.

    By Karen Corday December 11th, 2020 Read More
  • The Reason Country Music Fans Hate The Dixie Chicks

    While performing in London just before the United State was set to invade Iraq, lead singer Natalie Maines said to the audience, "Just so you know, we're on the good side with y'all. We do not want this war, this violence, and we're ashamed that the president of the United States is from Texas."

    By Aimee Lamoureux December 11th, 2020 Read More
  • The Surprising Origin Of Acrylic Nails

    Acrylic nails are very common these days, and celebrities can often be seen sporting some insanely long ones that make you wonder how they go about their day. And there's a pretty unexpected person to thank for the long nails that complete a woman's look.

    By Emilia David December 11th, 2020 Read More
  • The Tragic Story Of The Babylonian Captivity

    One of the most critical events in Jewish history, especially as a defining moment for Jewish culture, is also one of the Bible's lesser known epochs: The Babylonian Exile, from 586–538 BCE. The Babylonian Exile is the reason why Judaism cohered into a canonical religion at all.

    By Richard Milner December 11th, 2020 Read More
  • A Look Into Keith Richards' Friendship With Tom Waits

    Fans of Tom Waits will know that his biggest collaborator and creative inspiration is his wife Kathleen. For the longest time, he only wrote songs with her, but he saw something in Keith Richards that made him want to break that trend. "There's nobody in the world like him," Waits told NPR.

    By Cody Copeland December 11th, 2020 Read More
  • This Is What It Was Like To Feast In Ancient Rome

    Ancient Rome has became known as the seat of opulence and luxury. It was the place where people gave up on stretchy pants and went right to togas, and those expanding waistlines might have had something to do with their love of feasting. This is what it was like to feast in Ancient Rome.

    By DB Kelly December 11th, 2020 Read More
  • The True Origin Of Gift Cards

    When do you think gift card first appeared? 1950? 1970? Actually, these plastic presents entered the gift-giving industry relatively recently -- in 1994, initially from retailer Neiman Marcus as the NM Express card, and later by Blockbuster Video, the onetime king of video, DVD and game rentals.

    By Sandra Mardenfeld December 10th, 2020 Read More
  • The Accident That Nearly Cost Stephen King His Life

    Now 73 years old, King is still writing -- he published If It Bleeds and The Institute just last year. While his literary output is indeed impressive, he's as mortal as the rest of us. And back in 1999, King suffered a near-fatal accident that almost deprived the world of his extraordinary mind.

    By Aimee Lamoureux December 10th, 2020 Read More
  • This Is Where The Royal Family's Christmas Takes Place

    The holidays offer a time to enjoy family, celebrate the beauty of the season, and engage in festive traditions like tree-trimming, drinking eggnog, and singing carols. While the British Royal Family also does such yearly rituals, their Christmastime is also filled with certain obligations.

    By Sandra Mardenfeld December 10th, 2020 Read More
  • The Reason John Belushi Grew To Hate Chevy Chase

    You'd think a group of talented comedic minds would work well together while they ushered in one of the greatest and longest-lived television shows in history, and it probably looked that way from the viewer's side of the TV screen. Behind the scenes, SNL was a totally different beast.

    By Nick Vrchoticky December 10th, 2020 Read More
  • Why The Canadian Mounties Were Originally Formed

    Sir John Macdonald wasn't worried about murderers, trespassers, or even infighting between the Natives and the large influx of new settlers. The Mounties were first formed to deal with the problem of the illegal whiskey trade.

    By Aimee Lamoureux December 10th, 2020 Read More
  • The Surprising Thing Medieval Peasants Ate Illegally

    Deer meat, or venison, was highly desirable, but rarely offered for sale. The rich people who had access to it on their lands simply kept it for their families' personal use. When it was sold, it was still only accessible to the rich people who could afford to buy it.

    By Karen Corday December 10th, 2020 Read More
  • This Is What The Royal Family Eats For Christmas Dinner

    The British Royal Family is steeped in tradition, from how they dress to how they interact with people. Celebrating the holidays is no different, even though they are also just a family who wants to be together for Christmas and eat the food that comforts them.

    By Emilia David December 10th, 2020 Read More
  • The History Of Sledding

    Few activities are as synonymous with winter as sledding. In colder regions around the world, children excitedly wait for the next snow day so they can go out sledding with their friends. Adults, too, enjoy the thrill of speeding down a hill on a wooden sled -- but they may prefer not to admit it

    By Daniel Leonard December 10th, 2020 Read More
  • The Genetic Quirk Linked To Blond Hair

    Part of the intrigue surrounding blonde hair has to do with its rarity. According to author Christie Davis, just 5 percent of adult European and North American women have naturally blond hair, while Fact Retriever reports that just 2 percent of the world's population can claim natural blondness.

    By Karen Corday December 10th, 2020 Read More
  • The Genetic Mutation That Could Be Responsible For Blue Eyes

    It's taken quite some time to go from Gregor Mendel's 1860s original work to these current results. After all, people used to believe that children's eye color sort of blended from their parents, like paint on a palette. It took quite some time, however, for the first blue-eyed human to even exist.

    By Richard Milner December 10th, 2020 Read More