It was February 18, 1964. The Beatles had arrived in America just 11 days earlier and had taken the nation by storm. They already had the number one record on the charts and several others quickly catching up. They had appeared on the Ed Sullivan show before 73 million awestruck and curious fans. It was the highest rated television broadcast […]
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Making copies of architectural drawings hasn’t always been the easiest thing in the world to do. For the majority of human history, the most economical solution was simply to have someone make a tracing of the original plans. In the mid-nineteenth century, the process abruptly became much quicker and easier thanks to famed polymath Sir John Herschel. In 1842, Herschel […]
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Today in History: February 11, 1916 Emma Goldman, a tireless crusader for women’s causes, was among the first to recognize the link between free speech and reproductive rights. So it comes as no surprise that her arrest on this day in history, 1916, was for violating the Comstock Act, which deemed it a federal offense to transport “obscene, lewd and/or […]
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In this episode, you’re going to learn the fascinating true story of a (very likely innocent) boy who was electrocuted via an electric chair twice, and in between made national headlines as the full story of his first trial and the events surrounding his conviction came out. [TRANSCRIPT] Don’t miss future episodes of this podcast, subscribe here: iTunes | RSS/XML […]
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Skittering along at about an inch off the ground, one of the most vicious predators on the planet is often smaller than its prey, blind as a bat and utterly freaking creepy. Giant Centipede Basics Typically reaching 10 inches in length (although some overachievers grow to a full foot long), Scolopendra gigantea is the largest species of centipede on the […]
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Our resident medical expert, Scott, and a buddy of his recently started The Medicine Journal, where you can learn all sorts of interesting facts about all things medical related. Below is their second video. If you like it, please subscribe to their YouTube channel here If you liked this video, you might also enjoy: How Blood Works Humans Have a […]
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Featureflash / Shutterstock.com Featureflash / Shutterstock.com Text Version: Fact #671: You should think twice before saying, “When Hell freezes over.” In fact, it freezes over quite frequent in the small village of Hell, Norway where sub-zero temperatures are not that uncommon in the winter. The name for the town derives from the Old Norse “hellir,” which meant “cliff cave” or […]
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There’s a perception that religion and science go together about as well as mayonnaise and marshmallows. In some instances, this is, perhaps, true. But on a typically warm Southern California January in 1933 at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, California (the same place and same time that Jack Parsons of rocket science fame was doing his experiments — […]
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Today in History: February 10, 1957 On this day in history, 1957, famed writer Laura Ingalls Wilder died. Wilder’s writing career didn’t begin until she was 60 years old. The main purpose for writing her first book “Little House in the Big Woods,” was to ensure her beloved Pa’s stories wouldn’t be lost and forgotten. She often told her daughter […]
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This is a weekly wrap of our Daily Knowledge Newsletter. You can get that newsletter for free here. Why There Is No E in the A-F Grading Scale Some schools do hand out E letter grades instead of an F, but they are in the minority. A majority of schools in the United States, particularly beyond primary age, give grades […]
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In this episode, you’re going to learn one of the most interesting facts I’ve ever come across about the way most humans breathe; something you’ve probably never realized, despite doing it your whole life and that this fact is quite obvious once pointed out. [TRANSCRIPT] Don’t miss future episodes of this podcast, subscribe here: iTunes | RSS/XML You can also […]
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Kipchoge Keino, aka Hezekiah Kipchoge Keino or (thankfully in the interest of avoiding typos) just Kip, is a retired athlete who ran for the country of Kenya. Throughout his career, Kip earned almost a dozen medals, half of which were gold, for being an amazing middle to long distance runner. The story we want to share is the time Kip […]
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Today I found out why Ferris wheels are called that. A necessity at any county fair or festival, Ferris wheels stand out like a beacon on the horizon leading eager fair-goers to crowded rides and overpriced popcorn and funnel cake. But before there were Ferris wheels, there were simply “pleasure wheels.” These wheels weren’t nearly as large as most Ferris […]
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On April 20, 1914, up to two-dozen people were killed in a tent village adjacent to the Ludlow Coal Mine in Ludlow, Colorado. This massacre of striking workers and their families is widely seen as one of the lowest points in labor relations in U.S. history. Southern Colorado Coal Strike From September 1913 to December 1914, the United Mine Workers […]
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Our resident medical expert, Scott, and a buddy of his have just started The Medicine Journal, where you can learn all sorts of interesting facts about all things medical related. Below is their first video. If you like it, please subscribe to their YouTube channel here: If you liked this video, you might also enjoy: Does Cauterizing a Wound Really […]
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Today in History: February 7, 1914 One hundred years ago today, comedic genius and cinematic pioneer Charlie Chaplin made a few wardrobe choices that resulted in one of the most recognizable and iconic film characters of all time. Chaplin described his ensemble in his autobiography: “pants baggy, coat tight … hat small, shoes large.” He went on to say, “I […]
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In this episode, you’re going to learn just what is the difference between fur and hair. 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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In 1861 in southwestern Missouri, near its border with Kansas, the city of Osceola was sacked by rabid anti-slavery jayhawkers (from Kansas). When the looting and burning were over, ten people were dead and the city was ruined. The Jayhawkers Brigadier General James Henry Lane led the 3rd, 4th and 5th Kansas Volunteers- soldiers who were staunchly free soil riding […]
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