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Origins of the Jolly Roger
Today I found out the origins of the Jolly Roger flags. Ships throughout history typically stocked a variety of different flags used for sending a message, signaling other ships, and for identifying themselves. For
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Why Short Movie Advertisement Clips are Called “Trailers”
Today I found out why short movie advertisement clips are called “trailers”, even though they are typically shown before the movie. It turns out, the first movie trailers occurred not at the beginning of the
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AstroTurf Was Originally Named “ChemGrass” Before Being Used by the Houston Astros Baseball Team
Today I found out AstroTurf was originally named “ChemGrass” before being used by the Houston Astros Major League Baseball team in the Astrodome. Contrary to popular belief, AstroTurf was not first used or invented
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A Group of Cats is Called a ‘Clowder’
Today I found out that the correct term for referring to a group of cats is ‘clowder’. Interestingly, there are also two other valid ways to refer to a group of cats, other than just saying
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The French Word for “Paperclip” is “Trombone”
Today I found out the French word for “paperclip” is “trombone”. The word trombone originally comes from the Italian “tromba”, which comes from the same Latin word, “tromba”, both retaining the same meaning: trumpet.
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Why Carbonated Beverages Are Called “Soft Drinks”
Today I found out why flavored carbonated beverages are called “soft drinks”. It turns out, soft drinks aren’t just flavored carbonated beverages. “Soft Drink” refers to nearly all beverages that do not contain significant
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The Origin of the Phrase “Pipe Dream”
Today I found out the origin of the phrase “pipe dream”, meaning “a fantastic hope or plan that is generally regarded as being nearly impossible to achieve.” This phrase first popped up in the
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Where the Words “Crayola” and “Crayon” Come From
Today I found out where the words “Crayola” and “Crayon” come from. The word “Crayola” was originally thought up by Alice Binney. Binney, a one-time school teacher, combined the French word “craie”, meaning “chalk”,
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Where the Ampersand Symbol and Name Came From
Today I found out where the ampersand symbol and name came from. The symbol for “&” comes from combination of letters in the Latin for “and”, “et”. Specifically, in Old Roman cursive, it became
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The Symbol on the “Pound” or “Number” Key (#) on a Telephone is Also Called An Octothorpe
Today I found out the symbol on the “pound” or “number” key (#) is also called an “octothorpe”. The origins of this term date back to the 1960s and 1970s in Bell Labs with
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