The world is more interesting than you think.
Unexpected facts, big ideas, and little discoveries. Find something that sparks your curiosity today.
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Machig Labdron conquered her inner demons by meditating in graveyards and visualizing monsters eating her physical body
The 11th-century Tibetan yogini called the practice Chöd, or “severance”; its grotesque visions were meant to loosen attachment to the ego.
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David Lynch funded Eraserhead with a newspaper route
When funding dried up, Lynch spent years delivering Wall Street Journal papers to save for film stock and props for Eraserhead.
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France's great canal let cargo skip the trip around Spain
The Canal du Midi connected the Mediterranean to the Garonne route toward the Atlantic. That created an inland alternative to sailing around the Iberian…
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Why the Cold War powers left Antarctica alone
The 1959 treaty let rival powers avoid settling their competing claims: it set them aside and barred military bases and nuclear testing. Antarctica became a…
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James Gandolfini put rocks in his shoes to play Tony Soprano
He also deprived himself of sleep, using physical discomfort to help sustain Tony's irritation.
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A two-person firm landed a $300 million grid contract
After Hurricane Maria in 2017, Puerto Rico awarded Whitefish Energy a huge electrical-repair contract. The company had just two full-time employees when the…
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Venice once used lion statues as anonymous tip boxes
Citizens could submit anonymous accusations of treason, tax evasion, or espionage to the Council of Ten through the lion-mouth boxes. Venice made a stone lion…
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Tourist spending can pass through a place without staying there
A trip to Machu Picchu involves several purchases—transport, accommodation, admission, food, and guiding. Who owns and supplies those services determines…
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Oaxaca has a market corridor devoted to smoke and meat
At the Pasillo de Humo in Oaxaca's Mercado 20 de Noviembre, shoppers choose meat such as tasajo or chorizo and have it grilled over charcoal nearby. The smoke…
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A 4K microLED TV needs nearly 25 million tiny lights
Each of its roughly 8.3 million pixels needs red, green, and blue emitters. Placing those microscopic parts one at a time would be painfully slow, so…
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D&D can make a wrong turn more dangerous than a fight
Tomb of Annihilation sends players across the jungle of Chult with an incomplete map. Navigation, water and supplies become problems between encounters, so…
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Wuppertal's hanging trains lean into the bends
The cars hang below their rail, placing their center of gravity beneath the suspension point. They can swing outward on curves, helping the railway follow the…
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Self-driving cars are fighting for curb space
A self-driving car needs somewhere to collect or drop off passengers, and that means waiting at the curb. When several cars queue for the same narrow strip of…
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Peter Gabriel filmed Sledgehammer under a sheet of glass
To create the stop-motion look, Gabriel lay motionless beneath glass while animators moved dead fish, raw meat and clay around his face frame by frame. He…
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Chile's Atacama can briefly trade desert for flowers
Unusually favorable rainfall can trigger the desierto florido, when seeds and bulbs respond with mass blooms. The display is episodic rather than a guaranteed…
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Maersk methanol mega-ships force global supply chains to adopt green financing
Banks participating in the Poseidon Principles tie shipping loans to climate targets. That gives shipowners a financial reason to cut emissions; Maersk’s…
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How childhood trauma can make pain feel worse later
Early trauma can leave the nervous system more watchful, so it may turn up the volume on pain signals later in life. That can make an ordinary ache feel…
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Controlled heat can bring an old arcade board back
Repeated heating and cooling can leave cracks in solder joints. Professional rework heats the affected connections in a controlled way so the solder can form…
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Shetland builds a Viking-style galley to set it on fire
At Lerwick's Up Helly Aa, a torchlit procession ends with participants throwing torches into a specially built galley. Months of preparation produce a…
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Undertale’s soundtrack makes familiar melodies change sides
Toby Fox reuses musical themes in different tracks, changing their speed, instruments, and setting. A tune you associate with one character can return in a…
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How tragedy becomes a shared national story
A national tragedy becomes a shared story when people encounter it through the same images, anniversaries, and public rituals. Those repeated reminders give…
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In Rust, logging off leaves you exposed
In Rust, logging out leaves your character unconscious in the game world, where other players can raid your shelter and steal your supplies. That makes…
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In Dominion, victory cards clog your deck
Victory cards like Estates and Provinces score points but do nothing when drawn, slowing the deck that buys them. Score too early, and your engine can bog…
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In this Mexican town, weaving is the local economy
In Teotitlán del Valle, families have passed down Zapotec weaving techniques for generations, using hand-spun wool and natural dyes made from crushed…
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