Today I found out about the Tunguska Event, which was a 1908 explosion estimated to have been nearly 1000 times more powerful than the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima in 1945 and about 1/3 as powerful as the largest ever detonated atomic bomb, the Tsar Bomba. The Tunguska event occurred around 7:00 a.m. local time on June 30, 1908 near […]
Read more
Today I found out the Bluetooth standard is named after a 10th century Scandinavian king. The man was Harald I of Denmark. “Bluetooth” is the English translation of “Blåtand”, which was an epithet of Harald I (Harald Blåtand Gormsson). Legend has it, he received this name due to being extremely fond of blueberries and consuming them so regularly and in […]
Read more
Today I found out why your nose gets runny when it is cold. On an average day, a typical person’s nose will produce about one quart of mucus/fluid (just under one liter). Most all of this snot generally gets passed back into your throat and swallowed, often without you even really being too conscious of it. When you’re breathing cold […]
Read more
Today I found out about one of the great practical jokes 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 could make any house in London the most talked about place […]
Read more
Today I found out caterpillars’ bodies “melt” almost completely before morphing into butterflies in the chrysalis. In order for the change from a caterpillar to a butterfly to take place within the pupa, the caterpillar begins releasing enzymes that literally digest nearly all of its own body. What’s left inside the chrysalis is mostly just a very nutrient rich soup […]
Read more
Today I found out a 61 year old potato and sheep farmer once won one of the world’s most grueling athletic competitions. The man was an Australian by the name of Albert Ernest Clifford “Cliff” Young, who decided to take up running as a sport at the age of 57. The competition was the Westfield run, which is an ultra-marathon that […]
Read more
Today I found what causes birthmarks. There are several different types of birthmarks. What causes them is an excess of pigment cells (Melanoctyes), or an excess of blood vessels confined to one area of the skin. Birthmarks caused by an excess of pigment in certain areas of the skin are known as pigmented birthmarks. The color of your skin is […]
Read more
Today I found out why people’s voices sometimes crack during puberty. The mechanics of a person’s voice is an awesome biological phenomenon. It all starts with the air in the lungs. As air passes from your lungs to the outside of your mouth, it can be manipulated in several ways. Should you decide a vow of silence is appropriate and […]
Read more
Today I found out saying “ahoy-hoy” was at one time the preferred way to answer the phone. The very brief popularity of this telephone greeting stemmed from the fact the “ahoy-hoy” was Alexander Graham Bell’s preferred way to answer the phone. Ahoy-hoy derives from the term “ahoy”, which is generally associated with being a nautical term used for hailing ships. […]
Read more
Today I found out that the youngest person to ever become pregnant and give birth was only 5 years old! Lina Medina was born on September 27th, 1933 in Ticrapo, Peru. At age 5, her mother, Victoria, brought her to a hospital because her stomach was increasing in size. Her parents originally thought Lina was possessed by evil spirits, but […]
Read more
Today I found out how a car’s rear-view mirror works. Ever wonder what is happening when you flip a rear-view mirror up or down to increase or decrease the amount of glare coming from the vehicle behind you? I assume if you’re still reading, you have, or at least have nothing better to do at the moment than find out! […]
Read more
Note: This is a guest article contributed by frequent TIFO visitor and owner of DumpADay.com, Jon. Today I found out that lighters were invented before the match. This one had me scratching my head for a bit. There are several sites out there that say the match came first. However, by definition of the “match”, they are incorrect. The match […]
Read more
Today I found out how the lines projected on the field during a televised football game work. What is happening behind the scenes of this seemingly simple line projection is actually quite complex. Putting that yellow line across your television screen to mark a first down or a blue line to mark the line of scrimmage requires numerous technicians, 3-D […]
Read more
Today I found out what causes blisters. We’ve all seen them, and unfortunately most of us have had one. Those painful, pockets of goo that form because some over exercised, over caffeinated, happy to be living life, outdoors-man decides to include you in their daily torture fest that is a hike up mount agony! So what exactly is going on […]
Read more
Today I found out that there is a type of duck that sometimes lassos potential mates with its penis to prevent them from getting away. Most male birds do not have penises. They typically copulate by briefly touching genital openings with a female, called a “cloacal kiss”. However, most ducks do have penises. The theory behind why this is the […]
Read more
Myth: Aerosol sprays damage the Earth’s ozone layer. This misconception stems primarily from the fact that, originally, aerosol cans used chlorofluorocarbons as a propellant. Chlorofluorocarbons were also used commonly in refrigerators, air conditioners, and for many industrial applications. Chlorofluorocarbons were particularly popular because they are non-flammable, non-toxic, and non-reactive to most compounds. However, after scientists began to observe that the […]
Read more
Today I found out that all 43,252,003,274,489,856,000 positions of a standard Rubik’s Cube can be solved in 20 moves or less. Anyone who is serious about solving a Rubik’s Cube uses some sort of algorithm, or sequence of steps to help them solve the puzzle. There are many different algorithms, varying in complexity and number of moves required, but those that […]
Read more
Today I found out Jimmy Stewart was a two star general in the United States military. In 1940, Jimmy Stewart was drafted into the United States Army, but ended up being rejected due to being five pounds under the required weight, given his height (at the time he weighed 143 pounds). Not to be dissuaded, Stewart then sought out the help […]
Read more