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The Coliseum of ancient Rome may have been the single most barbaric sporting venue in human history—in fact, some showdowns there were so ferocious that historians still talk about them today.

Mark Mancini
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You don’t have to watch The Walking Dead to catch some brain-eating action. In yet another example of the truth being stranger than fiction, it turns out that the animal kingdom has produced some consummate noggin-nibblers… including a few that might surp

Mark Mancini


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On October 15, Haribo owner Hans Riegel of Bonn, Germany, passed away at age 90, leaving behind a candy-coated, fruity-flavored empire of gold-bears, frogs, rattle snakes, assorted fruits, and soda bottles.

Jessica Bloustein Marshall




Operators at the switchboard of the Magneto Exchange of the National Telephone Company.

Thanks to developments in science and technology, you can't add jobs like slubber doffers and night soil men to your resume these days.

Meredith Danko




Back in the day, you might have encountered someone with a bridge to sell you.

From fake relics to fake princesses to medical fraud involving goat testicles, history is rife with con jobs that managed to fool unsuspecting marks.

Jake Rossen






Cleopatra depicted in a calendar print by Beatrice Decker.

Cleopatra famously had relationships with the Roman generals Julius Caesar and Mark Antony. Less, however, is remembered about the four children she had with these men.

Sarah McGrath
A spectacled flying-fox bat in Australia.

If you're worried that a bat is looking to swoop down at any given moment and suck down a few pints of your precious blood, we've got really great news for you.

Michele Debczak


An image of Earth from 1 million miles away snapped on July 6, 2015 by a camera on NASA's Deep Space Climate Observatory spacecraft.

How much do you know about the blue marble we call home? From how our planet formed to just how many species there are, here are 100 things you need to know about Earth.

Jake Rossen, Justin Dodd, Jonathan Mayer






The painting The Thirteenth Vendemiaire, October 5, 1795 depicts a key battle during the French Revolution.

If you think 'Les Misérables' taught you everything you need to know about the French Revolution, you might be surprised to learn that it was actually set during a completely different uprising.

Ellen Gutoskey