Pirate radio, kidnapping, battles- the principality of Sealand has seen all of these things and more, despite only being a tiny micronation lying about 7 nautical miles the coast from Suffolk, England. If you haven’t heard of Sealand before, it is the site of one of Britain’s Maunsell Naval Sea Forts that were utilized during WWII. This particular one was originally […]
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For those interested in nerding up your wardrobe, our good friends over at Neatorama are currently running a “Geeky T-Shirt” sale in the ever popular NeatoShop. You can check it out here.
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In this episode, you’re going to learn the truth about whether John F. Kennedy actually said “I am a Jelly Filled Doughnut” in German in one of his most famous speeches. [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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Sheel P. asks: How was the official retirement age for people first determined? The idea of “retirement” from working is a relatively recent one in the Western world. In fact, even at the end of the 19th century, over three-quarters of men over age 65 remained active in the workforce. So what happened? History of Retirement Pensions The greatest contributor […]
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Thandi asks: What are some key differences between the UK English and US English? Most people are well aware of some of the more obvious differences between British and American English. For instance, American English omits the “u” in colour, neighbour, honour, etc. Most people also know that a lot of words mean different things: a boot is the trunk […]
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Ryan asks: What exactly is malt? For millions of drinkers, it is perhaps the most important ingredient in the world. Malt, Exactly Malt is the product that is left over after a cereal grain has been dried, allowed to sprout, air dried again, then heated in an oven. Any of a variety of cereal grains, including rice, wheat, oats and […]
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Today in History: February 5, 1919 By 1919, the motion picture business was a multi-million dollar enterprise, but most of the profits were going to the studio heads who kept the stars under contract, drastically limiting their earning power in most cases. That’s why some the major movie stars of the day such as Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford, her husband […]
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In this episode, you’re going to learn a surprising truth about the temperature controls you have access to in your office building. 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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Nissi U. asks: Why is the Hubble telescope called that? Just about everyone has heard of the Hubble Space Telescope. A space-based observatory on “the highest mountain” the world can provide; it is the technology behind many of today’s great discoveries in space. Started in 1977 and launched into orbit in 1990, it has aided in humans determining the expansion […]
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Noah asks: Why is Japan called the land of the rising sun? Ancient, China developed all of the hallmarks of advanced civilization, including written language, advanced cities, specialized labor and bronze technology, as much as 2000 years before Japan. As a result, China, and its culture, had an enormously large influence on the younger culture, sharing its philosophies, political structures, […]
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This is an excerpt from our new book, The Wise Book of Whys, available in: Print | Kindle | Nook | Audiobook While today breaking a bottle of champagne over the hull of a ship is considered tradition before launching a vessel in certain countries, particularly Britain and the United States, people have been performing ceremonies at launches seemingly as long […]
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Today in History: February 4, 1938 “Magic Mirror, on the wall, who is the fairest of them all?” This simple question kicks off the world’s first full-length animated feature film, released across the United States on this day in 1938. An adaptation of a fairy tale from the Brothers Grimm collections, the evil queen, clearly having a mid-life crisis, is […]
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In this episode you’re going to learn just who was “Mother Goose” and how a collection of children’s stories got attributed to “her”. We’re also happy to say that Squarespace is offering a 10% discount to all our listeners, which you can get by going to squarespace.com and signing up with the offer code: DailyKnowledge For those not familiar, Squarespace […]
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Myth: Electric “eels” exist. There are, however, electric fish: eight-foot long, 600 volt, mouth breathing, alligator-killing fish. Electrophorus electricus Although there are a number of fish that produce an electric charge, the species that is called “electric eel,” E. electricus, is a member of the fish order, ostariophysian. Mistaken for an eel due to its shape and lack of pelvic, […]
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“Slush funds” has gotten many politicians and government officials in trouble over the years. The 19th and 20th century politics are riddled with fallen and, sometimes, corrupt individuals who were hit with the dreaded “they have a slush fund” tag. But what exactly is a slush fund? And how is a slush fund different from any other fund? The history […]
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Shany asks: Why is there no E in the 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 of A, B, C, D, or F. Rather than a failure on the part of academic institutions […]
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Today in History: February 3, 1780 Just as the clock was striking midnight in Litchfield County, Connecticut on February 3, 1780, a young man brutally bludgeoned to death his landlord Caleb Mallory, Caleb’s wife Jane and their nine-year-old granddaughter. After the murderer robbed the home, he burned it down with two of the couple’s other sleeping grandchildren still inside, two […]
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This is a weekly wrap of our Daily Knowledge Newsletter. You can get that newsletter for free here. The Woman Who Survived All Three Disasters Aboard the Sister Ships: the Titanic, Britannic, and Olympic Violet Jessop enjoyed incredible “luck” from a young age. Born in 1887 in Argentina to Irish immigrants, she contracted tuberculosis as a young child and was […]
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