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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Propulsion relies entirely on tossing mass backwards
A rocket pushes forward by throwing hot exhaust backward. The exhaust carries momentum one way, so the rocket gains momentum the other way; it doesn't need…
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Why Times Square drops a ball on New Year's Eve
Harbors dropped time balls at noon so ship captains could synchronize their chronometers before sailing. Times Square's New Year's Eve drop borrows that old…
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Reddit's founders supplied some of its earliest apparent crowd
Steve Huffman described the founders submitting links under invented usernames to make the young site look populated. This also helped establish the sort of…
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How school-bus-sized spacecraft fit in rockets
The rocket’s nose cone is narrow, so spacecraft fold their broad parts—solar panels and antennas—against the body for launch. Once the rocket releases them in…
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Why four colors are enough for any flat map
A flat map can always be colored with four colors so neighboring regions differ. The key is that two regions count as neighbors only if they share a border;…
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A wrong guess can help the right answer stick
When you try to invent an answer before seeing the right one, you have to search your memory and build a guess. That effort can make the correct answer stick…
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Pelican vessels circulate boiling liquids endlessly
Two curved tubes return condensed vapor to the flask's main chamber, making the liquid boil and drip back repeatedly to extract an essence.
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Geodesic domes distribute stress on triangles
Interlocking triangular trusses spread structural loads across the dome's frame, allowing the design to span large spaces without internal support beams.
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How slot machines across states feed one jackpot
A small percentage from thousands of machines across multiple states feeds the shared jackpot, so the prize grows far beyond what any one venue could offer.
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Toronto's white squirrels belong to a very familiar species
The pale squirrels associated with Trinity Bellwoods Park are eastern gray squirrels with unusual pigmentation. Their striking coats make them local…
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Indian block printing requires stamping fabric manually
A bedsheet can take about 500 hand-stamped impressions. Each intricately carved wooden block is dipped in dye and pressed onto the fabric by hand.
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Putting a man on the moon consumed massive federal budgets
At Apollo’s peak, putting astronauts on the moon took a striking share of federal spending. The United States was paying for a race to reach the moon before…
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Why Bulgarian dancers wear enormous bells
The Kukeri dancers’ deafening bells are meant to drive malevolent spirits out of the village.
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Euler's identity puts five famous constants on one line
Euler's formula describes motion around the unit circle using e raised to an imaginary angle. At an angle of π radians, the point has traveled halfway around…
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One puppet show lasts from dusk until dawn
A single puppeteer manipulates dozens of leather figures behind a backlit screen for nine straight hours.
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Why video poker must follow a payout schedule
The law requires video poker software to match the probabilities of drawing cards from an unrigged deck.
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Snapchat named its mascot after a Wu-Tang Clan member
The mascot, a smiling sheet called Ghostface Chillah, is named for Wu-Tang Clan member Ghostface Killah.
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Why Hershey built a park for workers
It began as an employee perk: Milton Hershey built a leisure area with canoes and carousels so factory workers had somewhere pleasant to spend their time off.
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Turkish travertine terraces gleam like bright cotton
Mineral deposits form Pamukkale’s bright white cascading pools, which can look like a snowy waterfall in a warm landscape.
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Why Tom was everyone’s first MySpace friend
Tom Anderson hardcoded his profile so every new user started with a friend on the platform.
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Thai Khon performances feature heavily gilded ornate masks
The towering masks hide performers’ faces, so they convey emotion through posture and hand gestures instead.
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Ballpoint pens roll ink via a tiny metal sphere
As the pen moves, its tiny metal ball picks up ink from the cartridge and deposits it on the paper.
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Persistence gives beginners more chances to improve
Talent can give someone an early lead; persistence determines how many chances they get to improve. Repeated practice exposes you to mistakes, feedback, and…
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An exercise habit can spill over into food choices
A study of participants in a physical-activity program found dietary improvement alongside changes such as greater enjoyment of exercise and confidence in…
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