In 1821, Thomas Jennings became the first African-American to hold a patent. He invented ‘dry scouring’, a method for removing dirt and grease from clothing that would lead to today’s dry cleaning.
The ratio of people using…
The ratio of people using email for fun versus those using it for work has flipped since the 1990s. Many people nowadays dread email “because it is a conduit for unwanted advertising, a wide range of spam, and flat out attempts to scam or ‘phish’ us”.
Alan Turing once bought…
Alan Turing once bought 150lbs of silver, but didn’t trust banks so he buried it in the woods instead. After the price of silver had almost doubled, he went to dig it up, but could no longer find it.
In 1942 there was a man…
In 1942 there was a man called “the phantom barber”, who would sneak into people’s homes in Mississippi at night and cut their hair
Antarctica doesn’t have any…
Antarctica doesn’t have any permanent citizens and has no indigenous population. Only 11 children are known to have been to be born there.
The 2000 hit “Who Let The…
The 2000 hit “Who Let The Dogs Out” by the Baha Men was a cover of a ’98 song “Doggies” by Anslem Douglas, which was informed by a ’94 techno hit by Twenty Fingers, which was taken from a ’92 hit by Miami Boom, which likely was inspired by a ’86 TX highschool football chant.
In 2010 a man was rescued while attempting…
In 2010 a man was rescued while attempting to sail around the United Kingdom. Using only a road map for navigation the ‘sailor’ had been keeping the coast to his right and in error ended up sailing in circles around the Isle of Sheppey until he ran out fuel.
For decades the CIA owned…
For decades the CIA owned and ran Crypto, a Swiss company that supplied cryptography equipment to many countries; naturally, the machines were rigged to give US spooks access to everyone’s communications.
After discovering a rare tumor…
After discovering a rare tumor on an unborn fetus, a Nigerian doctor removed the baby at 26 weeks, successfully operated on the tumor & put the baby back into the mother’s womb. She carried her daughter full term & both are happy & healthy four years later.
Before dogfighting was a thing….
Before dogfighting was a thing, enemy pilots would simply exchange waves or shake their fists at one another. At the beginning of WWI, recon pilots would often resort to throwing bricks, grenades, and even rope in hopes that it would get entangled in the enemy’s propellor.