Tag: history
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Where did Christmas Tree idea come from? Unwrapping its origins
The idea of the Christmas tree, as it is known today, finds its roots in traditions that date back to the Middle Ages in Germany. It was around this time that devout Christians began bringing decorated trees into their homes during the festive period. The earliest record reflects a guild in Freiburg setting up a…
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Is Sodalite a rock or mineral? Unveiling its true nature
Sodalite is a mineral famous for its rich royal blue color. It is classified as a tectosilicate and belongs to the cubic crystal system, commonly occurring in massive granular form. While it is sometimes mistaken for a rock due to its common presence in rock-forming environments, it is indeed a mineral with a well-defined chemical…
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Is Daisugi Real? The Ancient Japanese Tree-Growing Technique
The Japanese forestry method for harvesting wood, daisugi (meaning “cedar table”), goes as far back as the 14th century to solve a seedling shortage in Kyoto. Yes, Daisugi is real, not a hoax. Let’s explore the ancient Japanese technique for growing trees out of trees. The 700-year-old technique involves pruning a tree’s branches like giant…
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Rejected designs for the Eiffel Tower
When Gustave Eiffel and French designers Maurice Koechlin and Émile Nouguier unveiled their groundbreaking concept for the Eiffel Tower in the 1880s, the Parisian artistic community wasn’t impressed. Intellectuals like Charles Garnier and Guy de Maupassant criticized it as an eyesore, igniting the infamous “Artists Against the Eiffel Tower” petition. The Original Eiffel Tower Designs…
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Why pirates wear an eye patch
An eye patch, a parrot, a wooden leg, and a limp; these iconic attributes paint the picture of a pirate in popular culture. However, there’s more to the eye patch than meets the eye—quite literally. Contrary to common belief, famous pirates didn’t wear an eye patch due to a missing eye. Instead, it served a…
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Pinpointing where the Titanic sank
Where exactly the Titanic sank continues to captivate historians, scientists, and maritime enthusiasts alike. On April 15, 1912, one of the most iconic maritime disasters in history unfolded in the icy, inky darkness of the North Atlantic. The RMS Titanic, a ship famously described as “unsinkable,” struck an iceberg and sank, taking with it over…
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Dual head-mounted listening devices
This dual-mounted listening device served as an aircraft detection device before the invention of radar in 1935. The Dutch military used the elephant-looking ears to detect approaching enemy aircraft by listening afar for engine sounds. There were various iterations of the acoustic locators. The Germans created a dual sight and sound system in 1917 that…
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Diver finds 900-year-old crusader sword off Israel’s Carmel coast
A scuba diver discovered an ancient sword off Israel’s Carmel coast near the port city of Haifa. The iron sword is thought to have belonged to a crusader knight 900 years ago when the Crusaders were fighting Muslim forces for control over the Holy Land. Eagle-eyed diver Shlomi Katzin stumbled upon the three-foot blade on…
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Two ash-covered bodies from Vesuvius eruption uncovered at Pompeii
Archaeologists uncovered the body of a wealthy 40-year old man and his young slave in Pompeii, 2,000 years after the eruption of Mount Vesuvius. Excavations at the suburban villa Civita Giuliana, a suburb outside Pompeii, discovered the bodies covered in a bed of 6.5-foot ash. Researchers believe that the two men survived the initial eruption…