REALLY USEFUL KNOWLEDGE

In 1982 a California man strapped weather balloons to a lawn chair and ended up 16,000 feet in the air. 

By Adam Azra'el

Photo: Andreas Weiland

For as long as men have existed, they have dreamed of flying. Images of…

In 1945, a German submarine was sent to the depths after something went terribly, terribly wrong with its toilet.

By Adam Azra'el

Of all the terrifying and deadly technology utilized by the Germans during both World Wars, perhaps none was…

In 1783, a dispute over a diamond necklace destroyed what was left of Marie Antoinette's reputation and set the stage for the French Revolution.

By Adam Azra'el

Photo: Château de Breteuil / CC BY-SA (via Wikimedia Commons)

Ah, France....birthplace of…

In 1942, the Polish Army enlisted a bear. He eventually was promoted to the rank of Corporal.

By Adam Azra'el

Photo courtesy of the Imperial War Museum

World War II history is filled with the exploits of brave men and…

A little over 3,000 years ago, the island of Thera exploded and it's still messing with us today.

By Adam Azra'el

Photo: Marc Szeglat

EVERYTHING YOU KNOW IS WRONG

History is kind of a fickle subject, and it gets more…

In 1996, a man sued PepsiCo because they wouldn't sell him a fighter jet. 

By Adam Azra'el

Photo by John Torcasio

Ah, the 90s....what a decade. Phones got smaller and then bigger and then smaller and then bigger, music could…

During World War II, a black soldier managed to slow down a German offensive by sacrificing himself in an absolutely legendary way.

By Adam Azra'el

First Lieutenant John R. Fox, U.S. Army

It's safe to say that World War II…

In 1957, US scientists might have accidentally launched a manhole cover off the face of the earth.

By Adam Azra'el

Photo by Dan Meyers

In 1957, the world really didn't know all that much about nuclear bombs. The United States…

In 1628, a new Swedish war ship set sail and demonstrated exactly how not to build a war ship.

By Adam Azra'el

Photo by Jamie Morrison

In the early 1600s, a little-known glacier called Sweden suddenly (and very violently) announced…

During the American Civil War, soldiers from Minnesota captured a Confederate battle flag. Minnesota is never, ever giving it back.

By Adam Azra'el

(Photo: Minnesota Historical Society)

The American Civil War was a brutal, bloody conflict between the agrarian, slave-owning…

Once upon a time, the Vatican decided that penises were the worst thing ever....and then realized that they were everywhere in the Vatican.

By Adam Azra'el

(Photo by Roi Dimor)

NEW RULES

In the mid-1500s, the leaders of the…

A French convict escaped from prison using grenades....sort of.

By Adam Azra'el

(Photo by Emiliano Bar)

Michel Vaujour was a man who had things to do. Not nice things, maybe, but certainly things which were impeded by the fact…

In 426 B.C., the people of Athens took a vote on whether to murder or enslave every single citizen of a rival city-state. 

By Adam Azra'el

(Photo by Nils)

To unpack this one, we'll need to dial our time…

NASA launched the Hubble Space Telescope only to find out that it didn't work (and still doesn't, technically).

By Adam Azra'el

(Photo by Jeremy Thomas)

The year was 1990, and the Hubble Space Telescope had been in development hell for…

One time, Cleveland set 1.5 million balloons loose all at once. It ended exactly how you think it did, except much worse. 

By Adam Azra'el

(Photo by Andreas Weiland)

If ever there was a year marked by man-made disasters, it…