WEIRD HISTORY
Confederate agents seeking European support were imprisoned by the U.S. consul, which ignited international protest. The arrest and the subsequent landing of U.S. troops could happen in Tangier, yet it was completely unthinkable just 12 milesaway in Gibraltar or 60 miles away in …
A wild new hypothesis links supernovae to a pivotal moment in human evolution. By Passant Rabie – Among the many things that gave ancient humans an evolutionary edge over other primate species is the ability to walk upright. But exactly why our ancestors …
The research proposes an intriguing new twist in one of the most fascinating moments in Earth’s history. By Passant Rabie – Some 65 million years ago, our planet encountered one of the darkest days in its history. The Cretaceous-Paleogene extinction event resulted in …
Researchers present what they’ve learned now that they can read the tiny text inside the Antikythera mechanism. By Robby Berman – Exploded view of Antikythera mechanism (Peulle/Wikimedia). Though it seemed to be just a corroded lump of some sort when it was found …
Five hundred years after coining the first dollar, a tiny mining town is coming to grips with the many ways it shaped the modern world. By Eliot Stein – The US dollar is the most widely used currency in the world. It is …
Tool of the devil, harmless family game—or fascinating glimpse into the non-conscious mind? The makers of the first talking board asked the board what they should call it; the name “Ouija” came through and, when they asked what that meant, the board replied, …
The find may challenge modern notions about the starch-starved “paleo diet.” The excavation at Border Cave in the Lebombo Mountains on the Kwazulu-Natal/eSwatini border (Copyright Lucinda Backwell) By Katherine J. Wu, Smithsonianmag.Com – The human hankering for roasted root vegetables may have gotten …
Archaeologists think it was occupied by Maya elite more than 1,000 years ago. Parts of Kulubá are already open to the public, and the INAH hopes the newly discovered palace will become accessible “in the medium term.” (Mauricio Marat/INAH) – By Brigit Katz, …
Credit: Musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac / RMN Grand Palais. Written by Oscar Holland, CNN – As early cameras began spreading out from Europe in the middle of the 19th century, photography became an increasingly powerful medium for obtaining and disseminating …
In 2019, the human family tree got a little more complicated. By Sarah Sloat – Fifty-thousand years ago, humans’ romantic horizons extended far beyond other boring Homo sapiens. That’s according to a July 2019 study that describes how our ancestors often mated with …
