Paul Glee Waner played baseball in the big leagues for 20 seasons, from 1926 to 1945. They called him “Big Poison” despite Waner being a small man at 5 ft. 8 1/2 in. in height and never weighing more than 153 pounds. Despite his somewhat diminutive stature and the fact that he thought that he played better slightly drunk or […]
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Myth: Cracking your knuckles throughout your lifetime will eventually cause you to have arthritis. Have you ever cracked your knuckles and had someone yell at you to stop because it causes arthritis? 25-54% of the world’s population cracks their knuckles, men more so than women. Does this mean up to 54% of us will get arthritis? The short answer is […]
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The Beatles arrived in Manila to give two concerts in early July of 1966. This was to be one of their gigs on their 1966 final-ever tour; they had just finished a few very pleasant gigs in Germany. There were “bad vibes” almost from the word “go” as the boys arrived at the Manila airport. Ringo: “I hated the Philippines. […]
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Myth: Caffeine will stunt your growth We all remember being 12 years old and seeing your mom guzzling down her 3rd cup of coffee and really wanting some. When we asked if we could have a cup, the response was always the same: “No, caffeine will stunt your growth…” As if being tall was a necessary element in survival! It […]
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Matt asks: Does cranberry juice really help with urinary tract infections? The short answer is probably not according to recent research on the subject, though of course there are certainly many who swear by this method of getting rid of / preventing urinary tract infections (UTI’s) and there are good theories behind why cranberry juice could potentially help. In the […]
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J.K. asks: Why are the seasons called winter, spring, summer, and fall? “Winter” derives from the Proto-Germanic *wentruz, meaning winter. This in turn probably comes from the Proto-Indo-European (PIE) *wed, meaning “wet”. Alternatively, it may come from the PIE *wind-, meaning “white”. Either way, the Proto-Germanic *wentruz gave rise to the Old English “winter” as the fourth season of the […]
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Today I Found Out has teamed up with Jeremiah Warren to show his awesome “trivia” related videos here. I hope you enjoy his videos as much as I have. Bonus George Washington Facts: George Washington was taphephobic (irrationally terrified of being buried alive). On his death bed, he told his attendants “I am just going. Have me decently buried and […]
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Amanda asks: How exactly do penises become erect? Well Amanda, the physical response causing a flaccid penis to become hard can be mediated by both physical stimulation (known as somatic) or autonomic (involuntary) processes like arousal from an attractive person, or a combination of both. We’ll first look at the anatomy behind the erection and then talk about how the […]
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For those not familiar, the “First Lady” is a title which refers to the official hostess of the White House. Although it is not a firm prerequisite for the title, the First Lady is commonly thought to be the wife of the President. But who was actually the first-ever “First Lady”? If you guessed the logical answer, you, of course, […]
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Bob Young was born in Bakersfield, CA., on January 15, 1916. As a relay runner, he was to compete in the 1936 Olympics and would go on to win a silver medal. But despite these two historic (and very cool) accomplishments, Bob Young’s “coolest ever” accomplishment was a very unique one. He gave the finger to Adolf Hitler. Bob was […]
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Joseph Samuels (some sources list his surname as “Samuel”) was an English criminal, born in 1780. After being arrested for robbery at the age of 15, Samuels was eventually convicted and shipped to Australia in 1801. At the time, Australia had a penal colony at Sydney Cove. Security in these early penal settlements was reinforced by the isolation of the […]
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Michael S. asks: Why does testosterone cause more body hair? Testosterone is a steroid hormone from a group called androgen. Androgen affects many characteristics in our bodies, like the development of the male sex organs, the deepening of the voice during puberty, muscle and bone strength, and hair growth. Interestingly, the same circulating androgen, like testosterone, can increase hair growth […]
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Today I found out the English “alphabet song”, also known as “The A.B.C.”, is based on a tune by Mozart, which in turn is based on a French tune, “Ah, vous dirai-je, maman” (“Ah! Would I tell you, mother?”), which popped up in 1761. A couple decades later, Mozart used this tune in his Twelve Variations on Ah, vous dirai-je, […]
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Matt asks: Why does salt raise blood pressure? Well, Matt, it turns out a high sodium diet might not raise blood pressure, nor have any sort of adverse effect on cardiovascular health at all. But I’ll cover the theory on why salt raises blood pressure below- just realize it is just a theory and one not backed up by much […]
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Much of the genesis of the Beatles is a bit nebulous and is often argued, but most Beatles historians cite the date, July 6, 1957, as the official beginning of the Beatles. John Lennon, a neighborhood guitar-player (local trouble-maker, part-time shoplifter and full-time egomaniac) had been playing around at a few local gigs in the area for a year or […]
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On April 15, 1912, the legendary, ill-fated ship RMS Titanic sank. It remains, to this day, the most famous disaster in maritime history. There were approximately 2,223 passengers aboard the ship, of which 1,502 perished. (Some sources site the figures at 2,228, with 1,503 dying.) Besides humans, a dozen dogs were aboard the ship on its luckless maiden voyage. Just […]
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Myth: The way a soldier’s horse is portrayed in an equestrian statue indicates how the soldier died. This myth, perpetuated by many a tourist guide the world over, simply isn’t true. (Not unlike how tourist guides around the equator will often tell you that what hemisphere you’re in effects the way the water swirls down the toilet or drain. They’ll […]
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Steven asks: Does eye-black do anything or do people just think it does? For those that don’t know “eye black” is the substance used to make the dark markings athletes place under their eyes that are supposed to prevent glare from outside light sources, such as stadium lights and the Sun. It’s also supposed to help with contrast recognition (being […]
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