Fairy tales, as sweet as “happily ever after sounds,” were rarely happily ever after. Though, yes, some had these sweet endings, others hinted at darker themes. And evil and creepy characters threatened the well-being of countless fairy tale protagonists. Some of the creepiest are the women. (Is that a compliment?) And it wasn’t because they
Month: August 2021
Human beings have been using natural methods of disease control like medicinal plants for centuries, but so have animals. It is such a common phenomenon that it has its own name, zoopharmacognosy. Whether it involves utilizing the healing properties of other animals, plants, or even trash, animals will do whatever they can to keep themselves
One of the hardest things to do well in comedy is pairing one comic with another. History is filled with people who tried, but getting the right chemistry isn’t as easy as slapping a couple of names together. For a true comedy duo to work, both members have to bring their A-game, so the team
Alexander Pope once said that “he who tells a lie is not sensible of how great a task he undertakes; for he must be forced to invent twenty more to maintain that one”. Truer words were never said (or were they?) Below you will find a list of the most common fibs spat our way
It’s just a fact of life that, eventually, every food product the world is absolutely crazy about will be discontinued. Some fans still hold a grudge against the food manufacturer even decades later. The rest of us shake our heads and wonder what kind of insanity overtook our otherwise refined palates. We ask ourselves how
Just because a movie is made for children doesn’t mean it can’t still manage to give you nightmares. Look no further than the films on this list for children and adults seeking a hair-raising entertaining experience at home. (Or for those wondering how to scare your little cousin.) Whether they be animated or live-action, old
We use science-fiction to look to our future and fantasy to interpret our past. We use horror to talk about our present, about what scares us, about what’s wrong with the world we live in. The scary movies that make the most lasting impact are usually the ones that can exploit those niggling subconscious anxieties
Disco ruled the music scene during the 1970s and it is out of this era that hugely popular disco artists emerged with hit songs like “You Should Be Dancing”, “Rock The Boat”, “Never Can Say Goodbye”, and “Le Freak”, to mention but a few. Over the years, several artists from other genres have taken it
Throughout most of human history, gold has been one of the most prized substances. People tried to transmute lead into it, it’s been the basis of national economies, and it looks great in jewelry. Despite its rarity and intrinsic value, gold is hardly the most valuable substance available to us. These ten things will cost
Rock stars are popular. Many of them can fill athletic stadiums with crowds of devotees eager to hear them perform live. Understandably, their fans are also often curious about where their idols got their ideas for the hit songs they wrote. Especially during the 1960s and the 1970s, rock and roll, country and western, blues,
Our world is filled with fascinating creatures. But while some creatures are believable, some have characteristics so inconceivable that we might as well assume they were created by fiction writers. From hideous birds that sound like gunshots to shrimp that strike harder than Muhammad Ali, nature is one unpredictable force. This list of the top 10 species
Many people are loathe to admit that they are not sure of the facts, especially, it seems, when the facts in question are related to scientific subjects. Some individuals go even so far as to insist that nobody could be ignorant enough to believe certain misconceptions about physics, astronomy, biology, meteorology, botany, pathology, geography, embryology,
Where there is a stack of bones, there is a story. Some tales are mysterious, like the walls in Belgium that are made completely out of legs. Others are terrifying. From predators hoarding human bones to warriors abandoned in a field, here are the most bizarre bone collections of all time. 10 Times Bones Gave
Gradually and with fingers crossed, we’re starting to get back to normal. Even as the COVID-19 delta variant threatens additional lockdowns, the world is opening back up to travel – and one thing we can all use is a vacation. But with travel comes a decided downside: the dreaded tourist trap. Here are ten to
Celebrity is relative. In some cases, an individual’s fame defies the ages. In other cases—the vast number of them—a person who is famous in his or her own generation is unknown in the next. The celebrities on this list are examples. Many might not know who Douglas Tilden, Ed Doheny, Amor De Cosmos, or Edgar
First-rate directors of “A”-list casts supported by seasoned, reliable crews do not typically encounter the types of production problems that new directors of less-accomplished casts and crews sometimes experience. As a result, the latter’s films are often of low quality, partly because of the production company’s inexperience, partly because of the restraints of their films’
Cover songs often end up being far more popular than the original recordings. For instance, the 1981 cover of “I Love Rock ‘n Roll” by Joan Jett & The Blackhearts is a firm favorite around the world, even though it first hit the charts in 1975 after it was originally recorded by British band, The
The 1990s is the decade that genuinely allowed video games to thrive. With massive innovations in the arcades, the home console market, and PCs, thousands of games — good games — flooded the market. There are hundreds of top-tier games from the ’90s, but successful games don’t necessarily become important for the industry. These ten
Whether you want to be that guy at a party with an iguana on your shoulder, or you just can’t live without an adorable little monkey, odds are, you’re into exotic pets! The exotic pet trade is global, and it includes many cute and interesting animals. Of course, not everything available is necessarily a good
YouTube is one of social media’s biggest platforms, with 2.3 billion users active monthly worldwide. Among the thousands of monetized YouTube channels, some have such large fan bases that they can rake in millions of dollars every year. But the turn of the new decade brought a wave of social and political “activism” on social
There are few purer and more intense feelings than the concentrated cocktail of fear of ecstasy that is riding a theme park ride. Whether it’s water slides, rollercoasters, or drop towers, the main attractions at theme parks offer visceral, terrifying experiences in the safety of seatbelts, straps, rails, and tracks, all professionally and consistently maintained
Depending on your context, the lion is the King of the Jungle—or King of the Forest—even though lions don’t live in jungles and the females do all the hunting and killing. But still: the King. And with the crown comes would-be usurpers. You know, like Scar and his hyenas. Though most species know their place,
Medicine is better than ever, thank goodness. And those of us lucky to be alive (and in the right countries and societies) have access to the best medical science and technology in history. But curing diseases is not all lab-coated researchers moving colored liquid from one test tube to another, as every science scene in
It is always fun catching movie mistakes. There’s just so much satisfaction when you get to turn to your friend with an impish, self-satisfied grin and a rhetorical, “Did you catch that?” And there are a gosh darn lot of mistakes to find. Movie productions are massive undertakings that require thousands of moving parts to
Astronauts rock. They’re what half of all kids dream of becoming when they grow up. Those who successfully achieved the dream can tell you—it’s worth it. Being one of the first professionally trained humans to leave our home planet, floating in space, and looking back at the tiny blue marble, is an experience unparalleled in
The world is a dangerous place. It is especially dangerous for kids, whose little bodies and far-too-trusting brains aren’t always prepared to deal with all life has to throw (sometimes literally) at them. But it’s not just cars and guns and kidnapping that kids have to worry about; it’s often their own games. Many of
Trolling, the online antagonizing of others, is caused, in part, by trolls’ own personality traits, although genetics and the environment also play roles. Thanks to a study by Brigham Young University (BYU) researchers, we now know which personality traits motivate this abusive Internet behavior. Together, these characteristics constitute a “dark triad” consisting of narcissism, Machiavellianism,
Answer songs, which are written as a response to other songs, have been around for a long time. For instance, in 1923 the song “Yes! We Have No Bananas!” made waves on the music scene. Later that same year an answer song called “I’ve Got The Yes! We Have No Banana Blues” was released. As
Many of us cook daily, or at least watch cooking shows, and most at least cook occasionally. For the most part, we tend to think we have a pretty good grasp of food safety, but there are some things you didn’t realize were lurking in the background, potentially making you sick without realizing it, and
Biggest, smallest, oldest, tallest. Only relatively recently have we begun reliably recording the limits of what human beings can be, do or endure. Many marks are impressive, some concerning, still others just plain freaky. Here are ten current titleholders who, when necessary, are compared to all-time records held by someone no longer living. Top 10