The world is more interesting than you think.
Unexpected facts, big ideas, and little discoveries. Find something that sparks your curiosity today.
A little more wonder
Rammstein performers breathe fire through face masks
The band uses heavy masks fitted with flame devices to shoot jets of fire during live performances.
Discover more
Wild birds flying indoors signify sudden ruin
Families took the bird's sudden entrance as a message from beyond, warning that disaster was near.
Discover more
Can sprawling posture change your body chemistry
A wide stance and open arms can change how powerful you feel, and feelings feed back into the body. That shift can affect physiological responses tied to…
Discover more
Sample rates dictate high frequency reproduction
To reproduce high-pitched sounds, digital audio must sample the sound wave fast enough—often tens of thousands of times per second.
Discover more
A fire truck is a specialized machine built around its job
Pumps, water tanks, equipment storage, and—in aerial trucks—large ladders compete for space and weight. Departments specify different combinations for their…
Discover more
The bizarre search that became an expensive movie
One of the era’s most expensive entertainment projects followed a teenage boy asking strangers in a Japanese port town where to find sailors.
Discover more
STACKY FOR IPHONEA bigger world.
One discovery
at a time.
Keep discovering with Stacky. Interesting facts in an app that is always within reach.
Tactile paving keeps people off the train tracks
The bumpy paving marks the platform edge before a person reaches it. Feet and canes pick up the warning, turning a strip of pavement into a small, tactile…
Discover more
Monospace fonts give every letter equal width
A skinny “i” takes up the same horizontal space as a wide “W,” keeping columns of text and data aligned.
Discover more
Tying sticks in crosses binds malicious forces
Some traditions held that tying two twigs together with twine could bind wandering harmful forces.
Discover more
When a game disc was just a download ticket
Some games still require large downloads or updates, so buying a physical disc doesn’t always mean everything you need to play is on it.
Discover more
Skyrim's guards have a pastry joke ready for the Dragonborn
A guard can dismiss you with a crack about someone stealing your sweetroll. The line belongs to a running Elder Scrolls joke about an absurdly minor theft. In…
Discover more
Why lottery tickets feel worth buying
A lottery ticket sells a vivid possibility, not a likely outcome. Our minds give small chances extra weight when the prize is enormous, so the jackpot feels…
Discover more
Cutting an onion starts a chemical reaction aimed at your eyes
Breaking the cells brings ingredients together that form an airborne irritant. When it reaches the eye, tear glands respond by producing tears. The onion…
Discover more
Archeological digs consume massive preservation budgets
The digging is only the start of an archaeological site’s costs. Teams must secure the area, catalog fragments carefully and protect newly exposed finds from…
Discover more
Why pumice stones are born in volcanoes
Pumice starts as gas-rich volcanic rock. When it erupts and cools quickly, bubbles get trapped in the hardening material; the bubbles leave holes, making the…
Discover more
Flamenco guitar relies on percussive tapping
Players slap the soundboard with their fingers, turning the guitar body into a drum alongside the plucked strings.
Discover more
How roller coasters stop trains from colliding
The track is split into blocks, and only one train is allowed in each block at a time. Sensors and control systems hold a train at a brake point until the…
Discover more
A drink's ice level can be a cultural expectation
In the US, a glass packed with ice often signals a properly cold drink; in many European settings, drinks are commonly served with less. A traveler asking for…
Discover more
Selling recyclables may not pay the sorting bill
A city can spend more collecting, sorting, and hauling recyclables than it gets back by selling them. If buyers pay little for the recovered material, the…
Discover more
Cats staring blankly at walls detect guardians
Some folk traditions interpret a cat's fixed stare at a blank wall as surveillance of a household guardian invisible to humans.
Discover more
Why your expensive game weapon becomes useless
A weapon sold as a powerful early-game upgrade can be outclassed minutes later by a rusty one dropped by a basic enemy.
Discover more
Why Antarctic stations import everything
There’s little available on the ice to supply a station, so its food, fuel and building materials have to arrive by ship or plane. Even the calories for the…
Discover more
Overwatch turned homemade costumes into official competition
Blizzard's 2018 cosplay battle brought together teams from six European countries to recreate game characters. Fans voted, and judges assessed qualities…
Discover more
Why a public bench can cost thousands
A bench outdoors has to survive temperature swings, vandalism, and years of heavy use. Municipalities pay for a seat built to take that beating, not just a…
Discover more