Jonathon M. asks: Is it true that the Chinese government owns every panda in the world? Whether in D.C., London, Adelaide or Madrid, nearly all giant pandas in today’s zoos are technically there on a 5 or 10-year loan from China, and at a substantial price. It hasn’t always been this way, though. Beginning in the late 1950s and through […]
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In this week’s “best of” our YouTube channel, we share why “poindexter” is slang for nerd and why some pages in books are “intentionally left blank”. We also look at that time Australia lost a war to Emus, the time in history where you could avoid execution if you won a footrace with your executioner, how to pronounce “ye” correctly […]
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Carey Q. asks: How do they calculate what proof alcohol is and why is it called proof? An early example of beneficial government regulation, to proof alcohol was simply to test and verify that the contents of a barrel of liquid was what it was claimed to be. The process began in England around the 16th century. Its original purpose […]
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The following is an article from Uncle John’s Bathroom Reader We’ve all heard of the Ford Model T—but we rarely hear about the earlier automobiles in the whole “model-letter” scheme. So hear you go… ALPHABET CITY In 1908, the Ford Motor Company, founded by Henry Ford just five years earlier, released its first Ford Model T—and the world has never […]
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This is a weekly wrap of our popular Daily Knowledge Newsletter. You can get that newsletter for free here. Does the U.S. President’s Dog Get Its Own Secret Service Agents? Even before the U.S. president is elected such, if they’re considered a “major candidate” for the job, they get offered Secret Service protection. Whether they accept that protection or not, […]
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The first films were little more than what we would consider short clips, a boxer throwing a single punch or train arriving at a station– the type of scenes that today you might only see in the form of animated gifs. While popular perception is that movies got their start around the early twentieth century, the real seed that grew […]
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Ryan asks: If the president has a pet dog, do their bodyguards also watch over his dog like they do his family? Even before the U.S. president is elected such, if they’re considered a “major candidate” for the job, they get offered Secret Service protection. Whether they accept that protection or not, once elected until the day they die (unless […]
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The following is an article from Uncle John’s Bathroom Reader Sim Jae-duck is probably the only person in history who was born in a toilet, lived in a toilet, and died in one, too. Here’s his fascinating story. HELLO, WORLD In 1996, FIFA, soccer’s international governing body, awarded the 2002 World Cup to co-hosts South Korea and Japan. It had […]
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This is a weekly wrap of our popular Daily Knowledge Newsletter. You can get that newsletter for free here. Can Sharks Really Grow an Unlimited Number of Teeth While sharks aren’t exactly the ruthless predators most Hollywood features make them out to be (see: Do Sharks Really Not Like How Humans Taste?), they do possess a number of frighteningly efficient […]
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In this week’s “best of” our YouTube channel, we look at the inventions of everyday items, where Area 51 and ambulances got there names, the story behind Lincoln’s beard and finally why there are Bibles in hotel rooms. Click here to subscribe to our YouTube Channel for many more videos like this. The Rubber Band: Holding It Together Since 1820 […]
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Neal H. asks: Why do we put hydrogen peroxide on our cuts? As a child, did you ever skin your knee and fear telling your parents, afraid of your mom breaking out the brown bottle of pain containing hydrogen peroxide to “help heal” your wound? Given the agony it caused, you might have wondered whether the fizzing liquid was actually […]
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The following is an article from Uncle John’s Bathroom Reader We hope you get a rise out of this story—it cost us a lot of dough to put it together, but it was the yeast we could do! RISE AND SHINE Did you eat a sandwich today? Did you have an English muffin this morning or a slice of pizza […]
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Ryan G. asks: Is it true that if a shark loses a tooth it just grows a new one? Is there a limit to how often a shark can do this? While sharks aren’t exactly the ruthless predators most Hollywood features make them out to be (see: Do Sharks Really Not Like How Humans Taste?), they do possess a number […]
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For major league pitchers, getting a grip on a baseball can get a bit muddy. That’s because, at least for now (this may well be changing in the next few years), every single baseball used in a major league game is coated with a little bit of actual mud, known as Lena Blackburne Original Baseball Rubbing Mud, which comes from a […]
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In this week’s “best of” our YouTube channel, we look at the origins of Jell-O and the potato chip, how Judge Judy got her job, and much more . Click here to subscribe to our YouTube Channel for many more videos like this. The Jiggly Origins of Jell-O Why Don’t Hot Dogs and Hot Dog Buns Come in Packs of […]
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Other than the fact that he killed at least 24 people, drained them of blood, pickled them in alcohol-filled metal drums and was never caught, there isn’t a lot to say about Bela Kiss- the Vampire of Cinkota… Kiss’ story begins in the town of Cinkota, Hungary (at the time about 7 miles or 11 kilometers outside of Budapest) in […]
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The following is an article from Uncle John’s Bathroom Reader The business side of music can be a world of cutthroat legal practices and endless litigation. Here’s the story of one of the biggest music legal battles of all time. SOLO FLIGHT In 1969 George Harrison was on a break from the Beatles and was doing some concerts in Copenhagen, […]
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With the possible exception of the mysterious, enigmatic figure known only as Bob Ross (see: The Surprisingly Mysterious Life of Famed Artist Bob Ross), Pablo Picasso is perhaps the most well-known artist from modern times. (Although, I think most are probably unaware that his actual name was Pablo Diego José Francisco de Paula Juan Nepomuceno María de los Remedios Cipriano […]
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