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Fast & Furious sometimes filmed stunts before writing the story
With release dates set years ahead, crews sometimes shoot major stunts before the story is written. Screenwriters then build a plot around the footage.
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When workers were paid in vodka
When the Soviet Union collapsed and the economy buckled, some employers could not pay wages in ordinary money. Workers instead went home with goods—including…
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Bats remain the singular mammalian species on this planet capable of achieving sustained powered flight
A bat’s wing is skin stretched over long finger bones, and those fingers can flex to reshape the wing in flight. That lets a bat make sharp turns; a flying…
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Google was born from a misspelling
The founders intended “Googol,” the name for 1 followed by 100 zeros, to evoke the vast amount of information they wanted to organize. A misspelling when they…
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The studio wanted the John Wick puppy to live
The financiers feared the puppy’s death would hurt ticket sales and urged directors Chad Stahelski and David Leitch to change the script. They kept it,…
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Why Benjamin Franklin preferred the turkey to the eagle
Franklin was mocking the Society of the Cincinnati's eagle emblem, not drafting a bird-selection plan. The eagle stole fish; the turkey was native to America…
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Why we crave news that tells us we're right
When a headline confirms what you already believe, it rewards both your curiosity and your sense of belonging. You can treat the story as evidence for your…
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How Plato may have built an ancient alarm clock
According to the story, a water clock dripped into a vessel until it made a whistle, waking students for Plato's early lectures.
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Bananas are radioactive, and so are you.
Bananas are radioactive, and so are you. A small fraction of natural potassium is potassium-40, an isotope whose atoms release radiation as they decay.…
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Airline miles are a product sold to banks, not just a gift for frequent flyers.
Airline miles are a product sold to banks, not just a gift for frequent flyers. Credit-card partners buy miles to award customers, giving airlines revenue…
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Misjudging your skill can include misjudging the mistakes.
Misjudging your skill can include misjudging the mistakes. The Dunning–Kruger effect describes a pattern in which low performers overestimate their standing…
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A famous Napoleon anecdote gives the rabbits the upper hand.
A famous Napoleon anecdote gives the rabbits the upper hand. The story says a hunt was stocked with tame rabbits that ran toward the assembled men instead of…
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A Venus flytrap checks the visitor before paying for dinner.
A Venus flytrap checks the visitor before paying for dinner. Two closely spaced signals from its sensitive hairs usually trigger closure. Further stimulation…
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Foot odor is a shared project between moisture and microbes.
Foot odor is a shared project between moisture and microbes. Feet release sweat into an environment that shoes can keep warm and damp. Microbes on the skin…
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New-car smell is the interior slowly releasing chemicals.
New-car smell is the interior slowly releasing chemicals. Plastics, adhesives, fabrics, and other materials release volatile compounds into the cabin air.…
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Initiates of the Eleusinian Mysteries participated in the most famous secret religious rites of ancient Greece by drinking a barley beverage called kykeon that was likely contaminated with psychoactive ergot.
Initiates of the Eleusinian Mysteries participated in the most famous secret religious rites of ancient Greece by drinking a barley beverage called kykeon…
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Steven Spielberg only invented the modern blockbuster suspense thriller because the mechanical shark he built for Jaws kept sinking to the bottom of the ocean; the prop,…
Steven Spielberg only invented the modern blockbuster suspense thriller because the mechanical shark he built for Jaws kept sinking to the bottom of the…
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Gandhi's infamous obsession with nuclear weapons in the original Civilization game was caused by an integer underflow glitch.
Gandhi's infamous obsession with nuclear weapons in the original Civilization game was caused by an integer underflow glitch. His aggression rating began at…
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Minecraft creator Markus Persson accidentally created the iconic Creeper while trying to code a completely normal pig. He kept the misshapen design, gave it a sad face, and made it explosive.
Minecraft creator Markus Persson accidentally created the iconic Creeper while trying to code a completely normal pig. He kept the misshapen design, gave it a…
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London Underground platforms are infested with a unique species of mosquito that specifically evolved to survive in the dark, subterranean tunnels and feed off the blood of miserable commuters.
London Underground platforms are infested with a unique species of mosquito that specifically evolved to survive in the dark, subterranean tunnels and feed…
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Unused Starbucks balances become a line in its revenue.
Unused Starbucks balances become a line in its revenue. When some prepaid value is expected never to be redeemed, Starbucks recognizes 'breakage' under its…
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Counterfeit shillings became usable money in Somalia.
Counterfeit shillings became usable money in Somalia. After state collapse disrupted official currency issuance, unofficial notes continued to circulate…
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George Lucas completely outsmarted Fox executives in the nineteen-seventies by accepting a lower salary for directing Star Wars in exchange for keeping the merchandising rights,…
George Lucas completely outsmarted Fox executives in the nineteen-seventies by accepting a lower salary for directing Star Wars in exchange for keeping the…
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Grace Hopper and her team at Harvard University recorded the very first actual computer bug in 1947 when a literal moth flew into the relays of the Mark II computer and caused a massive hardware failure.
Grace Hopper and her team at Harvard University recorded the very first actual computer bug in 1947 when a literal moth flew into the relays of the Mark II…
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