The Great Fire of London (1666): Strange Facts Behind the Famous Disaster
The Great Fire of London wasn’t just a disaster—it was full of odd decisions and strange moments. Here are the quirkiest facts from 1666.
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Rain? What’s That?
Read more: Rain? What’s That?In Calama, Chile, a town in the Atacama Desert, no rain fell for 400 years, from 1570 to 1971. source
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Creative Eccentricities
Read more: Creative EccentricitiesThey say that genius and eccentricity go together. Perhaps that’s why these creative geniuses required Rudyard Kipling would only write when he had black ink in his pen. Ludwig von Beethoven poured ice water over his head when he sat down to compose music, believing it stimulated his brain. Charles Dickens wrote (and slept) facing…
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Serve ‘Em Up Fast
Read more: Serve ‘Em Up FastAustralian tennis player Samuel Groth holds the record for the fastest serve in a game. He smacked a ball at 163 mph (263 km/hr) in an event in Busan, South Korea in May 2012. source
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Not the Hometown Favorite
Read more: Not the Hometown FavoriteFranklin D. Roosevelt was elected President of the United States more often than any other person. Despite being elected four times, he failed to carry his home county, Dutchess County, New York, in any of the elections. source
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Robert Todd Lincoln: The Unlucky Witness to 3 Presidential Assassinations
Read more: Robert Todd Lincoln: The Unlucky Witness to 3 Presidential AssassinationsRobert Todd Lincoln, son of Abraham Lincoln, witnessed the assassinations of three U.S. presidents—Lincoln, Garfield, and McKinley. Explore his eerie reputation as America’s unluckiest VIP guest.
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Blaise Pascal Made Child’s Play Out of Euclid’s Geometric Propositions
Read more: Blaise Pascal Made Child’s Play Out of Euclid’s Geometric PropositionsWhen he was a child, Blaise Pascal once locked himself in his room for several days and would not allow anyone to enter. When he emerged, he had figured out all of Euclid’s geometrical propositions totally on his own.
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The Little Man from Nuremberg
Read more: The Little Man from NurembergMatthew Buchinger (1674-1740) was known as “The Little Man of Nuremberg.” Buchinger was born without hands, legs, or thighs and was less than 29 inches tall.
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The Definition of a Second: Making Every Cesium 133 Atom Count
Read more: The Definition of a Second: Making Every Cesium 133 Atom CountWhat is the scientific definition of a second? Find out here.
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“Some Days I Dream As Many as Six Impossible Things Before Breakfast”
Read more: “Some Days I Dream As Many as Six Impossible Things Before Breakfast”About 20 minutes before the onset of pain from a migraine headache, many sufferers experience a phenomenon called “the aura.” During this time the sufferer may see intense colors, flashing lights, and even hallucinations such as monsters and ghosts. Lewis Carroll, who suffered from migraines for most of his life, is said to have been…
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Divine Wind
Read more: Divine WindA Japanese scroll art created 200 years ago during the Edo period (1603-1868) is dedicated to gas warfare, but not the kind of gas traditionally used in combat.
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I’ll Get You, My Pretty… And Your Little Kitten/Bunny, Too
Read more: I’ll Get You, My Pretty… And Your Little Kitten/Bunny, TooIn a move certain to make Grumpy Cat even more surly, Russian tax collectors have started arresting cats and holding them in custody to motivate delinquent taxpayers to make good on their obligations.
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Anticipating Presidential Protection
Read more: Anticipating Presidential ProtectionOne of the last official acts of President Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865) before leaving for Ford’s Theater where he would be fatally shot was to sign legislation that created the United States Secret Service.
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Zimbabwe’s 100 Trillion Dollar Banknote
Read more: Zimbabwe’s 100 Trillion Dollar BanknoteRead about Zimbabwe’s disastrous hyperinflation and the 100 Trillion dollar banknote it printed.
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Pope Francis: the Bruiser of Buenos Aires
Read more: Pope Francis: the Bruiser of Buenos AiresWhat did Pope Francis do before he became pontiff? Find out the surprising answer.
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Indiana Jones and the Unscripted Battle
Read more: Indiana Jones and the Unscripted BattleLearn how one of the most memorable scenes in Raiders of the Lost Ark wasn’t part of the original plans for the movie.
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A Buttload is an Actual Unit of MeasurementFebruary 5, 2020
