Technology
Discover facts about technology. Small discoveries that change the way you see familiar things.
Technology
Strategic Air Command deliberately set the launch code for the United States Minuteman nuclear intercontinental ballistic missiles to a string of eight zeroes from 1968 until 1977.
Strategic Air Command deliberately set the launch code for the United States Minuteman nuclear intercontinental ballistic missiles to a string of eight zeroes…
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Bluetooth technology was named after Harald Bluetooth, a tenth-century Scandinavian king who united diverse Danish tribes into a single kingdom, much like the technology was…
Bluetooth technology was named after Harald Bluetooth, a tenth-century Scandinavian king who united diverse Danish tribes into a single kingdom, much like the…
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Universal Serial Bus inventor Ajay Bhatt specifically chose not to make the original USB design reversible because adding the extra wiring would have doubled the cost of manufacturing and potentially killed the project.
Universal Serial Bus inventor Ajay Bhatt specifically chose not to make the original USB design reversible because adding the extra wiring would have doubled…
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Roughly eight percent of the global currency actually exists as physical cash, meaning the overwhelming majority of the money in the world is just a collective hallucination stored on bank servers.
Roughly eight percent of the global currency actually exists as physical cash, meaning the overwhelming majority of the money in the world is just a…
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Douglas Engelbart invented the very first computer mouse in 1964, and it was essentially just a clunky hollow wooden block with two metal wheels strapped to the bottom.
Douglas Engelbart invented the very first computer mouse in 1964, and it was essentially just a clunky hollow wooden block with two metal wheels strapped to…
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Global Positioning System satellites orbiting the Earth have to continuously adjust their internal clocks to account for Albert Einstein's theory of relativity.
Global Positioning System satellites orbiting the Earth have to continuously adjust their internal clocks to account for Albert Einstein's theory of…
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Ray Tomlinson invented network email in 1971, making electronic mail a solid two decades older than the World Wide Web itself.
Ray Tomlinson invented network email in 1971, making electronic mail a solid two decades older than the World Wide Web itself. He chose the "@" symbol to…
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NASA's Shadow network boasts an internet connection speed of 91 gigabits per second, making it roughly 13,000 times faster than the average American home connection.
NASA's Shadow network boasts an internet connection speed of 91 gigabits per second, making it roughly 13,000 times faster than the average American home…
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Symbolics.com became the first ever commercially registered internet domain name when a Massachusetts computer company claimed it on March 15, 1985.
Symbolics.com became the first ever commercially registered internet domain name when a Massachusetts computer company claimed it on March 15, 1985. At that…
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South African tech company workers proved in 2009 that a carrier pigeon carrying a four-gigabyte thumb drive was substantially faster than their local broadband internet service.
South African tech company workers proved in 2009 that a carrier pigeon carrying a four-gigabyte thumb drive was substantially faster than their local…
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IBM introduced the first commercial computer hard drive in 1956, known as the RAMAC 305, which weighed over a ton and required a forklift just to move it around.
IBM introduced the first commercial computer hard drive in 1956, known as the RAMAC 305, which weighed over a ton and required a forklift just to move it…
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IBM engineer David Bradley created the infamous "Ctrl-Alt-Delete" keyboard shortcut in 1981 as a quick way to safely reboot a computer without powering it down completely,…
IBM engineer David Bradley created the infamous "Ctrl-Alt-Delete" keyboard shortcut in 1981 as a quick way to safely reboot a computer without powering it…
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Nokia began its corporate existence in 1865 as a humble single paper mill operation located on the banks of the Tammerkoski rapids in southwestern Finland.
Nokia began its corporate existence in 1865 as a humble single paper mill operation located on the banks of the Tammerkoski rapids in southwestern Finland.…
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Google founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin originally named their revolutionary search engine algorithm "BackRub" in 1996 because the system checked backlinks to estimate the importance of a site.
Google founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin originally named their revolutionary search engine algorithm "BackRub" in 1996 because the system checked backlinks…
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Why superglue bonds skin so quickly
Cyanoacrylate does not dry out; it undergoes rapid polymerization. The chemical remains liquid in the tube, but the absolute instant it contacts the…
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Calcium ascorbate stops sliced apples browning
An apple naturally turns brown the exact second oxygen touches its flesh due to an enzymatic reaction. To serve you pristine apple slices in a fast food bag,…
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Pringles aren't made like ordinary potato chips
Calling them potato chips is a biological stretch. They start as a dough made from dehydrated potato flakes, rice flour, and wheat starch. This slurry is…
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Bleach doesn't remove stains—it hides their color
Household bleach does not actually remove the dirt from your favorite white shirt; it just turns the dirt invisible. Sodium hypochlorite actively shatters the…
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How radioactive iodine destroys an overactive thyroid
If your thyroid gland becomes dangerously overactive, doctors weaponize your body's natural biology against it. Since the thyroid is the only organ that…
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Most vanilla flavoring isn't vanilla
True vanilla orchids are notoriously difficult to pollinate, so the food industry bypasses nature entirely. The vast majority of vanilla flavoring is…
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Hydroponic plants grow entirely without soil
Dirt is for peasants. Commercial hydroponics suspends crops in a sterile environment and feeds them via a perfectly balanced, nutrient-laced water solution.…
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Barium swallows coat intestines for clear x rays
Soft tissues like your esophagus are completely invisible to standard X-rays. To diagnose a stricture, doctors force you to drink a thick, chalky milkshake…
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A cloned pet won't remember the original
You spent fifty grand to resurrect your beloved golden retriever, but science has bad news. Clones are merely biological twins separated by time. Because…
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The radioactive glow on luxury watch dials
That gentle glow on your absurdly expensive timepiece does not come from absorbing sunlight. It is powered by tiny glass tubes filled with a radioactive…
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