In 2015, researchers testing the efficiency of mosquito repellents used a Victoria’s Secret perfume because they thought the floral fragrance would attract mosquitoes. To their surprise, they found it repels mosquitoes better than a range of mosquito deterrents.
During WW2 German prisoners…
During WW2 German prisoners were so well treated in Canada that they didn’t want to leave the country when released. Thousands of them eventually stayed or came back to Canada with one saying that the time in Canadian prison was “the best thing that happened to me.”
Gwen Stefani’s brother Eric…
Gwen Stefani’s brother Eric was originally the keyboardist for No Doubt but left to become an animator for The Simpsons. He was able to put No Doubt into the background of the Lollapalloza episode when they were still pretty much an unknown band.
Word quarantine comes…
Word quarantine comes from an Italian variant ‘quaranta giorni’, meaning forty days, the period that all ships were required to be isolated before passengers and crew could go ashore during the Black Death plague epidemic.
During the time of the Great…
During the time of the Great Depression, a banker convinced struggling families in Quincy, Florida to buy Coca-Cola shares which traded at $19. Later, the town became the single richest town per capita in the US with at least 67 millionaires.
In 2012 a ‘Dead’ man turned up…
In 2012 a ‘Dead’ man turned up at his own funeral in Brazil. His appearance prompted some people to faint and others to flee in panic.
One evening, while rushing…
One evening, while rushing for dinner after a long day at the lab, Constantin Fahlberg, a chemist at Johns Hopkins, forgot to wash his hands that had traces of benzoic sulfimide. This compound made his dinner taste sweet, and that’s how he discovered the artificial sweetener Saccharin.
“Benign masochism” is the reason…
“Benign masochism” is the reason why humans enjoy spicy foods, depressing songs, and roller coasters.
When he was a child, Stephen…
When he was a child, Stephen King witnessed one of his friends being killed by a train, though he has no memory of the event. His family told him that after leaving to go play with the boy, King returned, speechless and in shock. Only later did the family learn of the friend’s death.
When he was a child, Stephen…
When he was a child, Stephen King witnessed one of his friends being killed by a train, though he has no memory of the event. His family told him that after leaving to go play with the boy, King returned, speechless and in shock. Only later did the family learn of the friend’s death.