Reading Time: < 1 minute The youngest Prime Minister of Great Britain was William Pitt the Younger in 1783 at the age of 24, 6 months and 21 days. The oldest Prime Minister appointed for the first term was Henry John Temple, 3rd Viscount Palmerston on 6 February 1855 at the age of 71 years, 3 months and 17 days. …
Reading Time: 5 minutes When it comes to death row last words, some inmates take the opportunity to offer a final apology or to ask for forgiveness, while others choose to make one last joke or offer a message to the world. Here are some of the most interesting death row last words that have been documented. “I’d rather …
Reading Time: 2 minutes How peculiar this is. Benjamin Franklin wasn’t chosen to write the Declaration of Independence because the delegates feared that he would hide a joke in it. But why would the delegates to the Continental Congress fear that such an intelligent man like Benjamin Franklin would hide a joke in such an important document? To put it bluntly, he had …
Reading Time: 2 minutes Did you know that figure skating was a summer Olympics event? It certainly was, as bizarre as it sounds, and it wasn’t as a one off event either. Over the following two summer Olympics, figure skating was an event. Today when you mention figure skating, summer Olympics is pretty much the furthest sport from your …
Reading Time: < 1 minute Seven UK Prime Ministers have died in office, Spencer Compton, 1st Earl of Wilmington, who died on 2 July 1743. Henry Pelham, who died on 6 March 1754. Charles Watson-Wentworth, 2nd Marquess of Rockingham, who died on 1 July 1782. William Pitt the Younger, who died on 23 January 1806 (pictured). Spencer Perceval, who was …
Reading Time: 2 minutes Many of the religious texts that we read today are the product of medieval monks copying books. As you can imagine, in a time before printing presses the only way to do such a job was by hand, literally copying word for word the text from another book. Could you imagine how mind numbingly boring this …
Medieval Monks Copying Books Complained in the Margins Read More »
Reading Time: 3 minutes Imagine this for just one moment. Sliced bread was banned during WWII. Yep, the best thing since, well, sliced bread was banned, for just under two months. Could you possibly imagine going without an everyday item that you take for granted? It would suck, big time. Looking back, such a ban would seem ridiculous and utterly pointless. You …
Reading Time: 2 minutes Annie Oakley could have killed German Kaiser Wilhelm II, and possibly changed the course of history throughout the twentieth century. But how could this be possible? She was a fantastic performer when it came to firearms, but she was no soldier? Annie Oakley was renowned as one of the finest sharp shooters of the late nineteenth century, …
Annie Oakley Could Have Killed German Kaiser Wilhelm II Read More »
Reading Time: 2 minutes The loudest noise ever heard was an event so shocking and terrible that not only was it deafening, but also tremendously destructive. It wasn’t exactly the sound that caused the destruction, although it in itself would have had enough power to cause damage, it was the event that caused the loudest noise ever heard that was …
Reading Time: 2 minutes Babies don’t feel pain was a once common held belief among the health care profession. But why would anyone ever think such an absurd thing up? I mean, it seems too far fetched to be even remotely true, but it was. What makes this even more absurd was that it was a common held misconception …
Babies Don’t Feel Pain Used to Be a Common Belief with Doctors Read More »
