Nintendo Is Older Than the Airplane—and Mario Wasn’t Even Its Strangest Idea
Nintendo is older than airplanes, sliced bread, and video games. Learn how the company began in 1889 and evolved from playing cards to Mario and the Switch.
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Nintendo Is Older Than the Airplane—and Mario Wasn’t Even Its Strangest Idea
Read more: Nintendo Is Older Than the Airplane—and Mario Wasn’t Even Its Strangest IdeaNintendo is older than airplanes, sliced bread, and video games. Learn how the company began in 1889 and evolved from playing cards to Mario and the Switch.
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What Is the Correct Way to Hang Toilet Paper? Does the Patent Settle the Debate?
Read more: What Is the Correct Way to Hang Toilet Paper? Does the Patent Settle the Debate?What is the correct way to hang toilet paper—over or under? Seth Wheeler’s patent drawings offer evidence, but not quite a final legal verdict.
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The Four Countries That Have Never Visited Commonplace Fun Facts—and What We May Have Done to Offend Them
Read more: The Four Countries That Have Never Visited Commonplace Fun Facts—and What We May Have Done to Offend ThemReaders have visited Commonplace Fun Facts from 191 countries. Meet the four nations still holding out—and discover what may have offended them.
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Fugu: The Pufferfish That Can Kill You—and the People Who Eat It Anyway
Read more: Fugu: The Pufferfish That Can Kill You—and the People Who Eat It AnywayDiscover how Japan turned the poisonous pufferfish into fugu, a prized delicacy requiring skilled chefs, strict rules, and remarkable nerve.
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U-1206: The German Submarine That Lost a Battle With Its Own Toilet
Read more: U-1206: The German Submarine That Lost a Battle With Its Own ToiletHow did a toilet sink German submarine U-1206? Discover the bizarre WWII story of failed plumbing, chlorine gas, and a disastrous emergency ascent.
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The Bramah Challenge Lock: Britain’s Unpickable Lock Met One Stubborn American
Read more: The Bramah Challenge Lock: Britain’s Unpickable Lock Met One Stubborn AmericanIn 1851, Alfred Charles Hobbs tackled the Bramah Challenge Lock and picked Britain’s supposedly unpickable Bramah lock.
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The Origin of the Tooth Fairy: How a Tooth-Stealing Mouse Became a Childhood Icon
Read more: The Origin of the Tooth Fairy: How a Tooth-Stealing Mouse Became a Childhood IconDiscover the strange origin of the Tooth Fairy, from ancient tooth rituals and tooth-collecting mice to the modern fairy who leaves cash under pillows.
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Did Albert Einstein Fail Math? No—He Failed at Being a Model Student
Read more: Did Albert Einstein Fail Math? No—He Failed at Being a Model StudentDid Albert Einstein fail math? His grades reveal a brilliant student who excelled at mathematics but repeatedly failed at being a model pupil.
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Henrietta Nesbitt: The White House Housekeeper Who Made FDR Hate Dinner
Read more: Henrietta Nesbitt: The White House Housekeeper Who Made FDR Hate DinnerDiscover FDR’s hilarious White House food feud with Henrietta Nesbitt, the housekeeper who served meals the president hated—and refused to stop.
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USS Barb: The World War II Submarine That Sank an Aircraft Carrier—and Blew Up a Train
Read more: USS Barb: The World War II Submarine That Sank an Aircraft Carrier—and Blew Up a TrainDiscover how USS Barb became one of WWII’s deadliest submarines, sinking ships, firing rockets, rescuing POWs, and even destroying a train.
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Grover Cleveland: The President Who Personally Hanged Two Men
Read more: Grover Cleveland: The President Who Personally Hanged Two MenBefore entering the White House, Grover Cleveland served as a New York sheriff and personally hanged two convicted murderers.
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Malleus Maleficarum: How the “Hammer of Witches” Helped Turn Fear into a Death Sentence
Read more: Malleus Maleficarum: How the “Hammer of Witches” Helped Turn Fear into a Death SentenceExplore the Malleus Maleficarum, the “Hammer of Witches” that helped fuel witch hunts, torture, and tens of thousands of executions.
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Cotard Syndrome: The Strange Disorder That Makes People Believe They Are Dead
Read more: Cotard Syndrome: The Strange Disorder That Makes People Believe They Are DeadExplore Cotard syndrome, the rare delusion that makes people believe they are dead, nonexistent, or missing organs—and how doctors treat it.
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Francis Hopkinson: The Forgotten Founding Father Who May Have Designed the American Flag
Read more: Francis Hopkinson: The Forgotten Founding Father Who May Have Designed the American FlagDiscover Francis Hopkinson, the forgotten Founder who signed the Declaration, composed music, shaped national symbols, and may have designed the American flag.
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Fantomah: The Forgotten Superheroine Who Predated Wonder Woman—and Somehow Became Even Stranger
Read more: Fantomah: The Forgotten Superheroine Who Predated Wonder Woman—and Somehow Became Even StrangerDiscover Fantomah, the bizarre Golden Age superheroine who predated Wonder Woman, transformed into a skull-faced avenger, and nearly vanished from comics history.
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