##EMBED## Click Here for Sources and to Learn More Interesting Math Facts Text Version The equal sign (“=”) was invented in 1557 by Welsh mathematician Robert Recorde, who was fed up with writing “is equal to” in his equations. He chose the two lines because “no two things can be more equal”.
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Today I found out what the “PEZ” in “PEZ Dispenser” stands for. PEZ started out as a peppermint breath mint company in Vienna, Austria in 1927. The name PEZ derives from this fact. Specifically, “PEZ” comes from the German word for peppermint, “pfefferminz”, with the “p” coming from the first letter of the word; the “e” is from the sixth […]
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##EMBED## Click Here for Sources and to Learn More About the Founder of Wendy’s Text Version Dave Thomas of Wendy’s introduced the KFC trademark sign featuring a revolving red-striped bucket of chicken.
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Today I found out why chocolate is bad for dogs. Chocolate contains an alkaloid called “theobromine”. Theobromine is in the same family as caffeine and is a type of stimulant (they both are mythylxanines). Theobromine stimulates the central nervous system, cardiovascular system, and causes a slightly increases blood pressure. Dogs and certain other animals, such as horses and cats, cannot […]
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##EMBED## Click Here for Sources and to Learn Where the Word “Soccer” Comes From Text Version “Rugby” was also once known as “Football” and originally had almost the same set of rules as Soccer, though over time increasingly diverged. The name “Rugby” comes from Rugby School in England. Legend has it, during a Football match at that school, William Webb […]
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##EMBED## Click Here for Sources and to Learn More About Velociraptors Text Version The name “Velociraptor” comes from the Latin “velox”, meaning “swift”, and “raptor”, meaning “robber” or “plunderer”. The name was chosen by paleontologist Henry F. Osborn in 1924, after he discovered the fossil in Mongolia that same year.
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##EMBED## Click Here for Sources and to Learn What Camel’s Humps are Made of Text Version Even though today Camels can only naturally be found in parts of Asia, the Middle East, and Africa, Camels are actually thought to have originated in the Americas around 40 million years ago. It’s thought that they migrated to Asia shortly before the last […]
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##EMBED## Click Here for Sources and to Read About How UPS Was Founded By Two Teenagers With One Bike and $100 Text Version James Casey, one of the founders of UPS, originally wanted the trucks to be yellow, instead of brown. He was eventually convinced to make them brown by Charlie Soderstrom. Soderstrom pointed out that yellow trucks would be […]
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##EMBED## Click Here for Sources and to Learn Who Did the Voice of Yoda on the Movies Text Version The voice of Yoda on the radio dramatizations of the Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi was done by John Lithgow.
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Today I found out Weird Al Yankovic was the valedictorian of his class at Lynwood High School, which is just outside of Los Angeles. In addition to this, he graduated high school at just 16 years old. He was able to do so because his parents had him attend kindergarten a year earlier than is typical. After performing well academically […]
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##EMBED## Click Here for Sources and to Learn Why the Toilet is Sometimes Called a John Text Version “Head”, describing a toilet, was originally a maritime euphemism. This came from the fact that, classically, the toilet on a marine vessel was located at the front of the ship (the head). This was so that water from the sea that splashed […]
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##EMBED## Click Here for Sources and to Learn Where the Term “Booze” Came From Text Version Archeological evidence suggest that the earliest known purposefully fermented drink, specifically beer, was made all the way back in the late Stone Age around 10,000 BC, making it one of the earliest known prepared food substance along with bread, which also dates back to […]
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##EMBED## Click Here for Sources and to Learn More Interesting Poinsettia Facts Text Version The Poinsettia plant was named after Joel Robert Poinsett, who was an American ambassador to Mexico around 1829. Poinsett was an amateur botanist and liked the plant so much that he sent several back to his home in South Carolina where he grew them in his […]
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##EMBED## Click Here for Sources and to Learn How Hot Dogs Got Their Name Text Version The name “frankfurter” comes from the fact that a popular hot dog-like sausage was originally made in Frankfurt Germany (Frankfurter meaning “of Frankfurt”). The name was brought over to America sometime in the late 19th century from German immigrants who were familiar with the […]
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##EMBED## Click Here for Sources and to Learn More Interesting Asteroid Facts Text Version The odds of successfully navigating an asteroid field isn’t “approximately 3,720 to 1!” The actual odds would entirely depend on what asteroid field you were talking about and a variety of other factors. But for reference, NASA estimates the odds of one of their probes traveling […]
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##EMBED## Click Here for Sources to Learn More Interesting Buffalo and Bison Facts Text Version Wild American bison are one of the most dangerous animals to encounter in the United States. In Yellowstone National Park alone, nearly five times as many people are killed by bison than by bears every year. The bison can reach speeds of up to 35 […]
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##EMBED## Click Here for Sources and to Learn More Catgut String Facts Text Version Catgut strings are prepared by cleaning the intestines of fat and other undesirable additions. They do this by soaking the guts in water, then using a knife to scrape off the various things, such as fat, attached to the intestines. From there, the intestines are soaked […]
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##EMBED## Click Here for Sources and to Learn More About Koalas Text Version Koalas almost never need to drink water, getting sufficient water from the leaves they eat. In times of drought or when food is scarce, they will drink water from streams and the like, if necessary. But generally speaking, they don’t need to. This is a good thing […]
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