Nikola Tesla is one of the most intriguing and enigmatic characters of the modern age. His genius and eccentricity have sparked countless discussions concerning his contributions to science and his wasted opportunities. […]
Lord Frederick North (1732-1792) was Prime Minister of Great Britain from 1770 to 1782. He was described as an otherwise unremarkable man whose sole quirk was that he would go to bed […]
Harold Acton said of Sir George Sitwell that he was “the strangest old bugger you ever met.” Was this an accurate description, or was Acton being unfair? Read on and judge for […]
No one wants to be misunderstood, and being a great artist does not give you an exemption from this rule. Pablo Picasso (1881-1973) had a particularly-memorable way of discouraging anyone from questioning […]
Diogenes (c. 412 BC – 323 BC) was a Greek philosopher and one of the founders of Cynic philosophy. He urged his followers to live as simply as possible. He may also […]
English philosopher Jeremy Bentham (1748-1832) was the founder of utilitarianism. The philosophy espouses the idea that each one should do the things that will result in the most total happiness. Considering that […]
Francis Egerton, 3rd Duke of Bridgewater (May 21, 1736 – March 8, 1803), is remembered as the “father of British inland navigation.” He is credited for the Bridgewater Canal, commonly identified as […]
Albert Einstein disliked wearing socks and gloried when he could go without them. “When I was young, I found out that the big toe always ends up making a hole in the sock,” […]
William Buckland (1784-1856) was the first man to write a full account of a fossil (the Megalosaurus). His love of animals and food blended together into some rather interesting eccentricities.
While Oscar Wilde was a student at Oxford University, he was frequently seen walking through the streets with a lobster on a leash. source
Commonplace Fun Facts 