Science
People Tried Unworkable Methods to Ward off Illness Outbreaks in History
For much of history, medical knowledge about what caused illness and how to cure it was quite limited. People –…
Universal Outbreaks That Changed History
An epidemic is the spread of an infectious disease within a given population. It becomes a pandemic when it spreads…
Creative Pranks and Hoaxes in History
Just like today, there was no shortage in the past of pranksters and hoaxers who gulled others with acts of…
The Underappreciated Nikola Tesla, and Other Under-Recognized Historic Figures
Because life is often unfair, great fame and great recognition do not always go hand in hand with great accomplishments.…
Cleopatra Lived Closer to the Computer Age than to the Pyramids, and Other Atypical History Facts
We all have mental images of what we picture history was like. Implanted by schools, history books, conventional wisdom, popular…
The Reaction to Charles Darwin’s On the Origin of Species
Darwin was not the first to suggest that there was a relationship between man and other species. Nor was he…
Nobles Used to Suffer from “The Glass Delusion” and Were Terrified of Breaking
Towards the end of the Middle Ages, something strange started happening across Europe. People started believing they were made from…
The First ‘Confidence Man’ And Other Historic Cheats
Since the dawn of history – and probably even back when our hominid ancestors were still figuring out the whole…
Terrible Schemes that Governments and People Have Tried
Most brainstorms come nowhere near to producing useful and practical ideas. Indeed, if we are honest with ourselves, most brainstorms…
The ‘Baron’ of Arizona and Other Historic Hucksters
Back in the 19th century, a huckster laid claim to most of Arizona. In of itself, that would not be…