Karla asks: Who invented the Mexican wave? The wave, also generally known as the “Mexican wave” outside of the United States, was the brain-child of the longest continuously active professional cheerleader (41 years and counting), Krazy George Henderson, in the late 1970s. It made its national debut on October 15, 1981 in a playoff game between the Oakland Athletics and […]
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Long before the likes of Warren Buffet, Hetty Green dominated Wall Street through extremely shrewd investing, frugality, and exploiting the lax investment rules of her age, managing to amass one of the greatest fortunes in history. Hetty, born Henrietta Howland Robinson in 1834, was the daughter of Edward and Abby Robinson. The family first made their fortune thanks to Hetty’s […]
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Marleen asks: Did Amazon women really ever exist? They are mentioned time and again by the ancient Greeks in both their history and mythology, going all the way back to around the 8th century B.C. They were described as formidable warriors who cut off one breast to be better archers and lived in female-only communities- taking male lovers only once […]
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Sarah T. asks: Why do you never see commercial airline pilots that are women? When it comes to gender disparity, the world of commercial airline piloting is one of the most skewed with a whopping 97% of all commercial pilots being male (4000 female commercial pilots vs. 130,000 male worldwide according to The International Society of Women Airline Pilots). Those […]
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Drew asks: Why are some ice cubes clear and others cloudy? Unless you happen to have a specialized ice machine in your home, it is practically guaranteed that the ice your freezer makes is of the cloudy variety. A popular and well known trick to making clear(er) ice is to either boil the water first or use distilled water. However, […]
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Kaiden asks: Why is 9-1-1 the emergency call number? Before the 1960s, the United States didn’t have one universal phone number for Americans to call if they needed help from the police or fire department. Callers simply had to know the phone number for each department in the area they were currently in. In the case of large cities, there […]
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For those in the United States celebrating Independence Day and looking to have something interesting to talk to your friends and relatives about at your respective barbeques, here is some conversation fodder to both make yourself look smarter and avoid having to discuss once again how your cousin’s three year old daughter is already showing every sign of being the […]
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In this episode, you’re going to learn about two duels that were fought as a result of an affair Marie Curie had with one of her deceased husband’s former students. [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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Austin asks: Why are continental breakfasts called that? Many hotels offer guests a free breakfast consisting of muffin, coffee, cereal and milk, toast, juice, bagel, and, at some, even scrambled eggs and make-your-own waffles. Born in the Gilded Age, today’s continental breakfasts reflect the West’s transition from a mostly agrarian culture to an industrial (and today, service) society. Luckily, however, […]
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Matt asks: Why do men’s and women’s shirts and pants have the buttons on the opposite sides? When did this start? As with so many things in history, we can’t know with 100% accuracy why men’s and women’s clothes button up the opposite way. (Even something relatively recent like who invented Buffalo Wings is up for debate despite being invented […]
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Embed This Infographic [Source: Today I Found Out] If you liked this infographic, you might also enjoy: 10 Interesting Celebrity Facts 10 Celebrity Facts You Probably Didn’t Know – Part 2
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Hannah asks: Why do we kiss? Is this something built in or do we just do it because we see others do it our whole lives? Making Out. Snogging. Canoodling. Kissing. An activity that is teetering on the edge of gross when viewed objectively, but one that most everyone enjoys in practice. But why do we kiss? What compels us […]
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It’s been about a year since we did our last “Top Quick Facts” post here on TodayIFoundOut, so here are 55 of our favorites from all the quick facts we’ve posted since last summer. (And if you’re interested, here’s last summer’s top quick fact list).
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Aaron asks: Why is Rhode Island called an island when it is not? Most think the history of Rhode Island starts with Roger Williams, but the state’s “discovery” (at least by Europeans) dates back about hundred years before that to approximately 1524 and the Italian explorer Giovanni da Verrazzano (though he did most of his exploring in the name of […]
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Karla asks: Why do graduates wear caps and gowns? Also, why do we throw our caps in the air when we graduate? Inquiring minds want to know!!! Wearing academic robes is a tradition that dates back to at least the 12th century, around the time when the first universities were being founded in Europe. During this time, most scholars were […]
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Carl asks: What happens if you are sleep walking and you kill someone? Anyone who has ever tried to reason with a sleepwalker knows they can seem to be awake, yet have bizarre and irrational behaviors. Stubborn during the best of episodes, and inconsolable, unreasonable and intense in the worst, it is not hard to imagine these walking dreamers acting […]
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Stefan asks: Why do we still have pubic and armpit hair when we lost most of the rest of the hair on our bodies? What purpose does it serve? It’s a biological mystery that has perplexed humanity through the ages – especially in recent times when so many of us go to such great lengths to remove it. What useful […]
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Have you ever been in a dark place, say a movie theatre or a room with all the blinds close, and walked outside into the daylight when, all of a sudden, you begin to sneeze uncontrollably? You had no runny nose or desire to sneeze prior to this exposure to sunlight, but you just can’t help that big achoo? If […]
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