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BIG QUESTIONS
The generic name “Pol” for a parrot can be traced back to England since at least the early 1600s. In his 1606 comedy Volpone, Renaissance playwright—and close friend of William Shakespeare—Ben Jonson assigned many of the characters animal personas which r
Magicians have been practicing their craft for ages, but what’s the first magic trick that was recorded for posterity?
"I found that the best way to handle [filmmakers] was to hang medals all over them."
The explanation for the missing letters falls (mostly) into two categories.
Furbys were all the rage in the late nineties—1998 alone saw the sale of a whopping 27 million units—and remain popular to this day. But did you know that they’ve actually been cited as a national security threat?
Well-meaning geologists ended up confusing plenty of folks when they named stalactites and stalagmites. Both of these similar-sounding structures—typically formed in limestone caves—are capable of stretching over 27 feet in length. But what's the differen
If you watch the speed skaters during this year’s Winter Olympics, you’ll certainly notice something strange about the footwear they’re sporting. With a hinged blade that moves independently from the boot, modern speed skates look nothing like hockey or f
As any kid with a mason jar can tell you, the honeybee isn't the smartest animal on the planet. But oddly enough, a honeybee colony is actually pretty intelligent. How does the group make decisions when the individuals can't?
Matt Soniak answers today's Big Question.
Some people are like homing pigeons: Drop them off anywhere, and they’ll find their way around. Other people, though, can’t tell when they’re holding a map upside down. Are the directionally challenged just bad learners? Or are some of us just lucky to be
Before Sochi was selected as the host of the 2014 winter Olympics, not many people had heard of it, so it didn't have a widely known English pronunciation.
Caffeine isn’t the kickstarting jitter-drug you think it is. If anything, it’s a sneaky imposter.
Super Bowl XLVIII is this weekend, and both teams have already selected their designated uniforms for the occasion. But have you ever wondered why we call these athletic garments “jerseys” in the first place?
“Squatter’s rights” isn’t a list of specific rights, but refers to a specific form of adverse possession, a legal principle that we inherited from England and has been around, in one form or another, for ages.
Leaving aside for now the few foreign loanwords (e.g., Qatar, Iraq) where Q shows up without a U, an English Q is the only letter that can't go anywhere without a partner. Why does a Q always need a U? We can blame it on a whole bunch of our alphabetic an
Kind of. Boredom won’t directly kill you on its own, but it does make it more likely that a handful of other things will put you six feet under.
The term is mainly used figuratively today, but in the past it depended on whom you asked as different cultures gave different answers.
Facial hair is a symbol of virility and wisdom (not to mention a wonderful enhancement to a male body). But that doesn't mean a man who suffers from boy face—meaning, he can't cultivate a beard—isn't wise or manly. So why can't some men grow facial hair?
As they say, it takes money to make money, and Hollywood is certainly spending its fair share.
No one knows when, exactly, parents began terrifying their children with the prospect of a post-lunch drowning. But there are a few theories as to why.
From reality TV shows to The Beach Boys’ croons of Aruba and Jamaica, references to honeymoons are everywhere. But where did the term "honeymoon" first come from?
They're both filthy, but which is the most filthy?
When we pull an all-nighter to study for a test or put together a presentation, we assure ourselves we’ll just make it up later—but can you really catch up on lost sleep?