Jesus M. asks: Is there any real cheese in cheese whiz? As America gets ready for their upcoming Super Bowl parties (or Royal Rumble party, if that’s your thing), Cheez Whiz – the yellowish-orange, gooey, bland tasting “cheese” product – will surely make an appearance at some of them. But what is Cheez Whiz? Why did get it invented? And […]
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This Day In History: January 23, 1957 On January 23, 1957 the Wham-O toy company rolled out their very first batch of plastic aerodynamic flying discs – now known the world over as Frisbees. Since that day, the landscape of college campuses, parks and beaches have never been the same. The story of the Frisbee began on a Santa Monica, […]
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In this episode, you’re going to learn what common food item inspired Pac-Man and more about the history of this iconic game. [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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Scott S. asks: When you look at pictures of individual snowflakes, the snowflakes are clear. I was just wondering why is snow white and not clear then? First, it’s important to understand what’s going on when we see certain colors. Visible light from the Sun or other light source comes in a variety of wavelengths that human eyes interpret as […]
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Today in History: January 22, 1779 On January 22, 1779, notorious Tory outlaw Claudius Smith, who had plundered and terrorized the people of New York during the Revolutionary War, was executed on a makeshift gallows in Goshen, New York. Since his mother had long suspected he’d meet such an end and “die with his boots on”, he supposedly kicked off […]
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In this episode, you’re going to learn about a little talked about period of Edgar Allan Poe’s life in which he joined the military, attended West Point, and his exploits during this time. [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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Abi K. asks: What does the postal service do when a package is mailed with no valid recipient’s address and no return address? According to the USPS, mail can be considered “undeliverable” due to a number of factors ranging from insufficient postage to the person it’s addressed to refusing to accept it. Regardless of the reason the mail cannot be […]
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Nineteenth century America was a good time to be inventor. With the right timing, invention, marketing, and patent, one could become rapidly rich. Elias Howe (the sewing machine), Samuel Morse (Morse code), and Cyrus McCormick (the mechanical reaper) were just a few of the pioneers who reaped the financial rewards of their business acumen. Despite being the inventor of one […]
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This Day In History: January 21, 1977 On January 21, 1977, during his first full day as president, Jimmy Carter fulfilled a promise he made during his campaign when he granted a pardon to Vietnam War era draft evaders. The president felt that “reconciliation calls for an act of mercy to bind the nation’s wounds and to heal the scars […]
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In this episode, you’re going to learn how the U.S.’s eventual National Anthem became linked to baseball and sporting events, along with some other interesting facts about the creation of the Star Spangled Banner. [TRANSCRIPT] And as mentioned in the episode, if you’d like to learn more about Babe Ruth’s rather colorful life outside of baseball, you can do so […]
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This is a video from the very talented Brady Haran who, among other channels, produces phenomenal videos such as this one over at Numberphile, which you can subscribe to here. You can also join us in supporting Numberphile on Patreon here. If you liked this video, you might also enjoy: A Brief History of Pi The Origins of the Mathematical […]
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This is a video from the very talented Brady Haran who, among other channels, produces phenomenal videos such as this one over at Numberphile, which you can subscribe to here. You can also join us in supporting Numberphile on Patreon here. If you liked this video, you might also enjoy: The Origins of the Mathematical Convention of Using “X” as […]
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Gracen R. asks: Why is someone who is lazy called a couch potato? If you want to call someone lazy, a time-honoured way to do so would be to call them a “couch potato”. But why is it we compare lazy people to potatoes and why on Earth did some random guy own the trademark rights to such a silly […]
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This Day In History: January 20, 1968 It certainly wasn’t a case of love at first sight. Initially, Roman Polanski refused to speak to the equally unimpressed Sharon Tate. Even by the time they were on their second date, Roman’s idea of romance was jumping out at Sharon wearing a Frankenstein mask, scaring her to death. But rocky beginnings or […]
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Matthew L. asks: Who invented the rubber band? Cheap, reliable, and strong, the rubber band is one of the world’s most ubiquitous products. It holds papers together, prevents long hair from falling in a face, acts as a reminder around a wrist, is a playful weapon in a pinch, and provides a way to easily castrate baby male livestock… While […]
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In this episode, you’re going to learn a whole lot of interesting things you probably didn’t know about Martin Luther King Jr. [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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This Day In History: January 19, 1809 The tumultuous life of Edgar Allan Poe, the American writer, editor, and literary critic, began in Boston, MA on January 19, 1809. Poe was one of the early architects of detective fiction and is also considered a major contributor to the birth of science fiction. He was also among the first well-known American […]
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This is a weekly wrap of our popular Daily Knowledge Newsletter. You can get that newsletter for free here. Why Popcorn Pops First a little background, Popcorn or “zea mays everta” is a special kind of Flint corn, also known as “Indian corn” and sometimes “Calico corn”. Flint corn is readily recognizable as the kernels have a hard outer shell, […]
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