Damnatio memoriae (condemnation of memory) was a punishment reserved for certain people the Romans decided to dishonour for one reason or another. Rather impressively, it involved trying to get rid of all records that the person ever existed. Understandably, historians aren’t aware of any people to whom this dishonor was successfully applied, since if they did, it wouldn’t have been […]
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Stefan asks: What was Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. a Doctor of? On June 5, 1955, Martin Luther King, Jr. was awarded a Doctorate of Philosophy in Systematic Theology from Boston University. From that date until his death on April 4, 1968, the Reverend Doctor used the knowledge gained in his studies to help realize the dream that all people […]
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Today I found out the origin of the phrase “mind your own beeswax.” “Mind your own beeswax” and “it’s none of your beeswax” are common phrases you might hear being shouted by six-year-olds on the school playground. For the uninitiated, they basically mean “mind your own business” or “it’s none of your business,” but some people think it’s more complicated […]
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Craig asks: What is non-dairy creamer made from? Yucky stuff. But you have alternatives…. The chemicals, oils, sugars and milk products (yes, milk, in a “non dairy” product) vary depending on your brand. Carrageenan: Extracted from the red seaweed more commonly known as Irish moss (Chondrus crispus), carrageenan is used as a thickening agent and emulsifier to make foods creamier. […]
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Terryn asks: Who invented the elevator? The history of the elevator, if you define it as a platform that can move people and objects up and down, is actually a rather long one. Rudimentary elevators are known to have been in use in ancient Rome as far back as 336 B.C., with the first reference of one built by the […]
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The lasting images of what most of us perceive to be the “medieval times” includes heroic knights, stampeding horses, court jesters, giant turkey legs, ruling kings, and pure maidens wearing chastity belts. But the fact is that, besides the more obvious of those that aren’t accurate, most scholars believe that the chastity belt didn’t actually exist during medieval times, but […]
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Bill D. asks: Who is the “Murphy” who made Murphy’s Law? For those not familiar, Murphy’s Law states: “Anything that can go wrong will.” Early Origins Pessimists have existed long before the Murphy whose name today graces this fundamental law. One of the earliest instances of this “law” being stated explicitly happened in 1877 where Alfred Holt is believed to […]
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Ranjiith asks: Why do we say something is as dead as a doornail? In A Christmas Carol, Charles Dickens wrote about the questionable phrase, “dead as a doornail,” saying: Old Marley was as dead as a door-nail. Mind! I don’t mean to say that I know, of my own knowledge, what there is particularly dead about a door-nail. I might […]
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Have you ever said something that you ended up immediately regretting or wanted to take back straight away? Well, unless your words cost someone nearly a billion dollars, then you haven’t messed up quite as bad as Gerald Ratner did back in 1991. Yet. Ratner was the CEO of the Ratners Group, jewellers that shook up the usually stiff and inflexible […]
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In 1980 America, the Cold War was still very much hot, Ronald Reagan was elected President, and the United States’ Olympic hockey team shockingly upset the USSR in what would be dubbed “The Miracle on Ice.” Oh, and the new president of Iraq, Saddam Hussein, was given a key to the city of Detroit. How did this come to pass? […]
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Joel asks: Why do humans cry? Anti-bacterial, nutrient-rich, usually involuntary and often stress relieving, crying benefits more than just our eyes. Physiology of Tears Tears are a product of the lacrimal system, which: Has secretory and excretory functions that produce tears and drain them. The main lacrimal gland, located between a shallow depression in the frontal bone and the eyeball, […]
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Today I found out about the origin of the King James Bible. Back in 1603, Queen Elizabeth I passed away. She had ruled England for 45 years, was well-loved, and provided a sense of stability and security during her reign. Described as “neither a good protestant nor yet resolute papist,” she was able to provide a relatively happy medium between […]
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On June 11, 1982, E.T. entered Elliot’s tool shed and into the hearts of humans across the world. Roger Ebert famously said the Steven Spielberg-directed film was “not simply a good movie. It is one of those movies that brush away our cautions and win our hearts.” President Reagan and First Lady Nancy screened the movie at the White House […]
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Eleven thousand years ago, one saucy canine got busy and, as can happen with unprotected sex, gave its partner a venereal disease, although uniquely, this VD was cancerous. Over the course of the intervening millennia, that second dog, its partners, and its partners’ partners, all did what dogs eventually do, each spreading the disease, which has continued to retain some […]
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This is a weekly wrap of our Daily Knowledge Newsletter. You can get that newsletter for free here. Was Colonel Sanders Actually a Colonel? Kentucky Colonel is the highest honor that can be bestowed by the Commonwealth of Kentucky. (Incidentally, if you’re curious: Why Colonel is Pronounced “Kernel”) To be named a “Colonel” is to be recognized for “outstanding service […]
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Today I found out the origins of the words “kitty-corner,” “catawampus,” and other “cat” words. The word “kitty-corner” has many different variations: catty-corner, caddy-corner, cat-a-corner, or kit-a-corner. They all mean the same thing: something that is directionally diagonal from a certain point. Interestingly, despite all of the “cats” and “kits,” the word has nothing to do with domesticated felines. Rather, […]
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Ian K. asks: Why are students called freshmen, sophomores, juniors, and seniors? Rather than referring to a student’s year of study, in U.S. high schools and colleges, first year students are freshmen, second years are sophomores, third year students are juniors, and the most experienced are seniors. Yet although this practice seems uniquely American, its origins date back several centuries […]
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Skyrunner asks: Where do insects disappear to in the winter time? As ectothermic or so-called “cold-blooded” creatures, insects are particularly susceptible to winter’s freezing temperatures. To survive, this class of life form has developed a wide variety of adaptations in order to keep on keeping on. To begin with, perhaps the best-known tactic is simple migration, with the best known […]
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