The Rise and Fall of Pay Toilets
Vespasian's most useful contribution to history may well have been creation of pay toilets.
Whatever Happened To Piltdown Man?
Piltdown Man was once considered the missing link between apes and humans. What happened?
The Real Story Behind “Johnny Appleseed”
Johnny Appleseed was based on a real person, John Chapman, who was eccentric enough without the legends.
The First Celebrity Chef
Alexis Soyer frequently cooked for royalty and dignitaries, but also displayed a healthy social conscience.
Community Gardens Were All the Rage…in the 1700s
An eighteenth-century precedent for today's community gardens in Sheffield, England.
The Philosophy of Conspiracy Theories
Conspiracy theories boil down to a rejection of the absurdity, meaninglessness, and randomness of life and history.
This Doc Was Really Nuts
Nuts! is a new documentary about John R. Brinkley, whose claim to fame was transplanting goat testicles into men in the 1920s.
The Irish Were Way Ahead of the Soda Water Trend
Soda water is a popular beverage now, but it was once considered a cure, among other things.
The Moral Threat of Bicycles in the 1890s
The bicycle craze of the 19th century, in which both men and women participated, was seen as a moral affront by church leaders.