Scientists studying the belly button fluff of 60 people found 1,458 bacteria completely new to science. One participant’s fluff contained oil found only in soil from Japan, where he had never visited.
Boeing use potatoes to test…
Boeing use potatoes to test their in-flight Wi-Fi, as they reflect and absorb the signals similarly to people. The project is called Synthetic Personnel Using Dialectic Substitution- or SPUDS.
The Nazi Sieg Heil was…
The Nazi Sieg Heil was ridiculed by some people. Since “heil” is also the imperative of the German verb “heilen” (“to heal”), a common joke in Nazi Germany was to reply with “Is he sick?”, “Am I a doctor?”, or “You heal him!”
The largest electric vehicle…
The largest electric vehicle on Earth, a monster dump truck, never has to recharge because it moves uphill empty but downhill full, and regenerative braking with a full load provides enough electricity for it to go uphill again.
The Dodge La Femme, 1955…
The Dodge La Femme, 1955, was the first car made exclusively for women and it included purse, boots, raincoat and umbrella.
Mario Puzo, the author…
Mario Puzo, the author of the Godfather books who’d also adapted them to film, had no idea what he was doing as he’d never written a screenplay before. After winning two Oscars, he decided to buy a book on screenwriting to learn how. In the first chapter, it said “Study Godfather I”.
100 years ago, motorised kick…
100 years ago, motorised kick scooters like todays ”Bird“ scooters, were already a thing. They were foldable, had a top speed of 15 mph and were used by New York gangs as getaway vehicles.
The world’s first mental health…
The world’s first mental health hospital was built in Baghdad, Iraq in 705 AD. While mental health patients were being condemned, punished, and even burned in Europe, 8th and 9th century mental health patients in Iraq, Egypt, and Syria were given more proper hospitalization and treatment.
During WWII, a Nazi spy…
During WWII, a Nazi spy stationed in New York tried to turn himself into the FBI. The FBI didn’t believe him. The FBI finally listened when he showed up at FBI headquarters and offered proof that he really was a Nazi spy. He was imprisoned for 6 years and deported to Germany.
One of the most powerful unions…
One of the most powerful unions in New York City in the 1960’s was the Bagel Bakers Local 338. They made far more money than engineers, policemen, and teachers at the time. If they went on strike, bagels simply weren’t available since the process hadn’t been automated yet.