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Illustrations from 1997’s ‘Get Fit! ... How To Get in Shape To Meet the President’s Challenge and Earn the Presidential Fitness Award’

Almost as soon as it was introduced—and for generations after—the Presidential Fitness Test was absolutely traumatizing to students who had to endure it. Here’s how the program started—and ended.

Vince Guerrieri








ElementalImaging/E+ via Getty Images

Sure, you know that bees pollinate our crops and give us honey. But there's so much more to these buzzing insects than that.

Lucas Reilly




Yum.

The soft vanilla or chocolate swirl, popularized by Dairy Queen and other franchises, just doesn’t meet strict government guidelines for ice cream. But it’s still delicious.

Nick Keppler




They could still bug you at the beach.

Despite the name, some of these beachside pests aren’t even insects at all, though they could still hop up during your summer vacation in more ways than one.

Rudie Obias








Signs of an earthquake.

From a surprise temblor in the Mississippi Valley to colossal ruptures and tsunamis around the Pacific Ring of Fire, these are some of the biggest earthquakes in modern times.

Julie Fogerson