This Day in History: August 21st

This Day In History: August 21, 1920 “Promise me you’ll always remember: You’re braver than you believe, and stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think.” -Christopher Robin to Winnie the Pooh Christopher Robin Milne was born in London on August 21, 1920 to author Alan Alexander Milne and his wife Dorothy. For a first birthday gift, he received […]

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This Day in History: August 20th

This Day In History: August 20, 1619 On August 20, 1619, the first seeds were planted for the American/African slave trade. Although the “20 and odd” Africans aboard the ‘Man of War” were not considered slaves as slavery as it became was not practiced in the New World at that time; little is known about their status. It is believed […]

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Podcast Episode #211: Ahoy Hoy

In this episode, you’re going to learn about a phrase that very nearly became the popular way to answer a telephone, where the term came from, as well as how we ended up with “hello.”  We’re also going to spend a little time debunking a popular myth concerning “hello.” [TRANSCRIPT] Don’t miss future episodes of this podcast, subscribe here: iTunes […]

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The Cornell Professor Who Gave Us the Chicken Nugget

Chicken nuggets are delicious. I know this isn’t a particularly controversial statement. Despite pink slime, chemical preservatives, and sometimes questionable nutritional value, it’s hard to argue the basic point that these deep-fried, previously frozen, nugget-shaped “chicken” pieces are at least somewhat appealing to the human taste bud. The common assumption is that McDonald’s was the first to give us these […]

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Podcast Episode #210: Hubble

In this episode, you’re going to learn about the man who ultimately lent his name to the Hubble Telescope and why he was given that honour. [TRANSCRIPT] Don’t miss future episodes of this podcast, subscribe here: iTunes | RSS/XML You can also find more episodes by going here: Daily Knowledge Podcast

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A Brief History of the Ballpoint Pen and Whether NASA Really Spent Millions Developing a Pressurized Version Instead of Just Using Pencils

Kyle S. asks: There’s a story circulating around that NASA found out pens didn’t work in space, but still needed a writing device that would work there, so they spent millions of tax payer dollars developing a ball point pen that could be used in space. The Soviet Union, on the other hand, just used pencils. Is this true? Thanks! […]

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This Day in History: August 18th

This Day In History: August 18, 1634 On August 18, 1634, Urbain Grandier, a parish priest from St.-Pierre-du-Marché of Loudun, France, was executed for the crime of sorcery, when all he was really guilty of was ignoring that pesky vow of celibacy (like most clerics before him, including Pope Alexander VI who had seven known children) and provoking the anger […]

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Weekly Wrap Volume 51

This is a weekly wrap of our Daily Knowledge Newsletter. You can get that newsletter for free here. The Greatest Practical Joke of the 19th Century, the Berners Street Hoax The year was 1809. Famed English author, Theodore Hook, made a bet with one of his close friends, the noted architect and writer, Samuel Beazley, that within one week, he […]

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The Bum Brigade

On October 29, 1929, on what would become known as “Black Tuesday,” the stock market crashed. In one terrible day, the market lost fourteen billion dollars (about $188B today), signaling the beginning of the (roughly) ten-year-long Great Depression, with most of the last vestiges of the downturn only ceasing around 1939 due to the onset of World War II. Just […]

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Hangover Cures: Myths and Tips

Whether it’s a Bachelor Party, Dollar Drinks, Ladies’ Night or just Happy Hour, many of us get carried away once in awhile, and end up suffering the next day. While most home remedies are ineffective for managing the pain and nausea, there are a few steps you can take to either prevent, or alleviate, the ill-effects of having one (or […]

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