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Flappy Bird's creator removed his hit instead of cashing in indefinitely.
Flappy Bird's creator removed his hit instead of cashing in indefinitely. Dong Nguyen pulled the game from app stores in 2014 and told Forbes he was troubled…
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Water-soluble does not mean an unlimited vitamin dose is safe.
Water-soluble does not mean an unlimited vitamin dose is safe. The body excretes excess amounts of some vitamins, but that is not a universal safety valve.…
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Nintendo's Wii Sports caused such an aggressive spike in household property damage and physical injuries that medical journals literally coined the term 'Wiiitis' to describe the phenomenon.
Nintendo's Wii Sports caused such an aggressive spike in household property damage and physical injuries that medical journals literally coined the term…
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Bombardier built a way out of snowbound communities.
Bombardier built a way out of snowbound communities. His enclosed B7 snow vehicle went on sale in 1937, carrying people on skis and tracks over terrain that…
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Game of Thrones showrunners David Benioff and D.B.
Game of Thrones showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss famously rushed the final season of the wildly popular fantasy series because they were incredibly…
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Too much caffeine can make a quiet day feel physically alarming.
Too much caffeine can make a quiet day feel physically alarming. It blocks adenosine signals that normally help you feel sleepy, while high doses can bring a…
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Burt Reynolds said he turned down Bond because he was American.
Burt Reynolds said he turned down Bond because he was American. In a 2015 interview, Reynolds recalled thinking James Bond should be played by an Englishman…
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Route 66 lost its highway number, not every mile of road.
Route 66 lost its highway number, not every mile of road. The route was removed from the U.S. Highway System in 1985 as interstates displaced its…
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Paramount Pictures spent five million dollars digitally removing Henry Cavill's mustache for the Justice League reshoots because the actor was contractually obligated to keep his…
Paramount Pictures spent five million dollars digitally removing Henry Cavill's mustache for the Justice League reshoots because the actor was contractually…
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Richard Trevithick built the first full-scale working railway steam locomotive in 1804, and on its maiden voyage, it successfully hauled ten tons of iron and seventy men down the track.
Richard Trevithick built the first full-scale working railway steam locomotive in 1804, and on its maiden voyage, it successfully hauled ten tons of iron and…
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Seinfeld survived a weak pilot test thanks to money meant for television specials.
Seinfeld survived a weak pilot test thanks to money meant for television specials. NBC executive Rick Ludwin believed in the show and used his specials budget…
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Pac-Man can take turns that the ghosts are forbidden to make.
Pac-Man can take turns that the ghosts are forbidden to make. In the original arcade maze, ghosts in their normal chase and scatter modes cannot turn upward…
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Antibiotics can leave the toughest bacteria standing.
Antibiotics can leave the toughest bacteria standing. When treatment kills susceptible bacteria, resistant ones can survive and multiply. Unnecessary…
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Horses in The Elder Scrolls V Skyrim possess the inexplicable ability to defy the laws of physics and climb near-vertical mountain slopes.
Horses in The Elder Scrolls V Skyrim possess the inexplicable ability to defy the laws of physics and climb near-vertical mountain slopes. Players could…
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Netflix originally launched a feature called Max in 2013, which was a virtual assistant designed to ask users a few questions and then recommend a movie so they would stop endlessly scrolling through the catalog.
Netflix originally launched a feature called Max in 2013, which was a virtual assistant designed to ask users a few questions and then recommend a movie so…
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Celtic druids revered mistletoe as an incredibly sacred, mystical plant that could heal diseases, neutralize poisons, and grant fertility, performing elaborate rituals to harvest…
Celtic druids revered mistletoe as an incredibly sacred, mystical plant that could heal diseases, neutralize poisons, and grant fertility, performing…
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Cocaine Bear started with a real bear and a dropped drug shipment.
Cocaine Bear started with a real bear and a dropped drug shipment. In 1985, a black bear in Georgia died after encountering cocaine dropped from a smuggling…
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Nail biting can damage the barrier that keeps infection out.
Nail biting can damage the barrier that keeps infection out. Repeated biting injures the skin around a nail while carrying microbes between fingers and mouth.…
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Some male anglerfish fuse permanently with a much larger mate.
Some male anglerfish fuse permanently with a much larger mate. After a male bites onto a female, their tissues and blood supplies can join, leaving her…
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A taxi meter turned the fare into something you could watch.
A taxi meter turned the fare into something you could watch. Early mechanical meters combined distance traveled with time-based charges, making the price…
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Sony initially rejected the idea of producing the first Venom movie because executives fundamentally believed that a superhero film focusing entirely on a villain without…
Sony initially rejected the idea of producing the first Venom movie because executives fundamentally believed that a superhero film focusing entirely on a…
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Babe earned seven Oscar nominations, including Best Picture and Best Director.
Babe earned seven Oscar nominations, including Best Picture and Best Director. Chris Noonan directed the 1995 film, while Mad Max creator George Miller…
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An early helicopter pioneer tried lifting himself with two rotors.
An early helicopter pioneer tried lifting himself with two rotors. Paul Cornu built a twin-rotor machine and claimed a brief flight in 1907. Later engineering…
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A full-size train balanced on a single rail.
A full-size train balanced on a single rail. Louis Brennan's 1909 vehicle used two linked gyroscopes to stay upright. The spinning machinery and its control…
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