The Day a Cheese Cannonball Was Fired in War (Yes, Really)
Yes, a cheese cannonball was really fired in war. Discover this bizarre moment and other strange facts from the devastating Paraguayan War.
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LEGO Never Tires of Making Tires
Read more: LEGO Never Tires of Making TiresWhen it comes to the business of making tires, the LEGO toy company doesn’t play around. In 2012 LEGO was awarded the Guinness World Record for “Largest Tire Manufacturer Per Year” in recognition of the 318 million tires produced annually. That amounts to a staggering 870,000 per day.
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All that Glitters Might be in Fort Knox
Read more: All that Glitters Might be in Fort KnoxHow Much Gold is In Fort Knox? Completed in 1937, the United States Bullion Depository at Fort Knox, Kentucky is the primary location of the US gold reserves and other precious items. According to the December 31, 2015 report of the US Bureau of Fiscal Service, Fort Knox holds 147,341,858.382 ounces of the 261,498,926.230 ounces in the…
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The Longest Name in the World: How Would You Like to Sign His Autograph?
Read more: The Longest Name in the World: How Would You Like to Sign His Autograph?Discover the fascinating story of Hubert Blaine Wolfeschlegelsteinhausenbergerdorff (and this is the shortened form of his name), the man with the longest name in the world. Learn about its origins and meaning!
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The Strange Case of Mrs. Prodgers — The Terror of London Cabmen
Read more: The Strange Case of Mrs. Prodgers — The Terror of London CabmenCaroline Giacometti Prodgers, an infamous figure in 1890s London, gained notoriety as the Terror of London Cabbies for her relentless legal battles against cab drivers, filing over 50 lawsuits. Known for her dramatic courtroom antics, she became a symbol of consumer advocacy and garnered both fear and ridicule from cabbies. Her death in 1890 was…
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The Mark Twain Patents: A Patently Multi-Talented Author
Read more: The Mark Twain Patents: A Patently Multi-Talented AuthorMark Twain was much more than a gifted author. He was also an accomplished inventor. Learn about the Mark Twain patents here.
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Fast Times at Electron High
Read more: Fast Times at Electron HighEver wonder just how fast electrons are buzzing around in the orbits of atoms? There are a lot of variables that come into play, but if we keep it as simple as possible and look at a hydrogen atom, its single orbital electron is zooming in an orbital speed of 2,200 kilometers per second (7,920,000…
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Horrendous Fraud or Major Dentistry Breakthrough? The Curious Case of the Gold-Toothed Boy
Read more: Horrendous Fraud or Major Dentistry Breakthrough? The Curious Case of the Gold-Toothed BoyWhen Dr. Jakob Horst heard the reports of the 7-year-old boy with the gold tooth, he wasted no time getting there to investigate. The year was 1593. In the village of Weigelsdorf (today Ostrowiec), a community in Silesia, at the southwestern border of today’s Poland, a boy by the name of Christoph Müller attracted the attention of people…
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Cleveland Balloon Disaster: Spectacle or Ecological Debacle?
Read more: Cleveland Balloon Disaster: Spectacle or Ecological Debacle?In 1986, the Cleveland Balloon Disaster saw an attempt to break the world record for releasing the most helium balloons. Despite initial excitement, the release led to disastrous consequences. The balloons obstructed rescue operations, caused traffic accidents, and polluted waterways, resulting in lawsuits and significant environmental impact.
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The Dr. Seuss School of Architecture
Read more: The Dr. Seuss School of ArchitectureIf you happen to be in the area of Willow, Alaska, you may catch a glimpse of a building that will make you wonder if you have been transported to the land of fairy tales — or at least the land of Dr. Seuss. Known by locals as the Dr. Seuss House or the Willow…
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Unusual Jobs of Famous Writers [Infographic]
Read more: Unusual Jobs of Famous Writers [Infographic]I love reading about people’s lives before they became famous because it reminds me they used to be in the same boring boat as the rest of us. While the infographic is fun and done well, it would have been cool to see a greater diversity of authors. (I gotta admit though, Jack London being…
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You Can Buy a Lot of Fries for That
Read more: You Can Buy a Lot of Fries for ThatSomeone really likes potatoes — or at least pictures of potatoes. Someone likes them enough to shell out a lot of money for one particular potato picture.
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Meeting Death on His Feet — Just to Prove a Point
Read more: Meeting Death on His Feet — Just to Prove a PointBranwell Brontë was the brother of Wuthering Heights author Emily Brontë. He is historically noteworthy in his own right as a painter and writer. He would perhaps be better remembered had he not hastened his death through abuse of alcohol and opium. The approach of his own death really illustrated his tenacity. Although suffering from depression and…
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Meet the Men With the World’s Largest Hands
Read more: Meet the Men With the World’s Largest HandsMeet Robert Wadlow and Lui Hua: the Owners of the World’s Largest Hands Afflicted with a condition called macrodactyly, Lui Hua of Jiangsu, China had one of the largest hands on record. His left thumb was 10.5 inches (26 cm); his index finger was 12 inches (30 cm), and his middle finger was 6 inches…
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Give a Big Smile to the Creator of the Smiley
Read more: Give a Big Smile to the Creator of the SmileyIn 1963, Harvey Ball created the iconic smiley face in just ten minutes to boost morale at a company. He received $45 for his work, but did not copyright the design. Within 8 years, over 50 million smiley face buttons had been sold worldwide. Ball passed away in 2001 at the age of 79.
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A Buttload is an Actual Unit of MeasurementFebruary 5, 2020
