Columbus’ UFO
In 1492, the Columbus expedition sighted and visited land. We’re still not sure which island in the Caribbean he landed on, but did he see a UFO the night before?
Category: Places
The river under the Sahara
Searching for oil in the 1950s, prospectors discovered huge supplies of ancient water under the Sahara. The Great Man-Made River (an enormous network of underground pipes) now brings that water to the major cities of Libya.
Pirate radio
New Zealand had no private radio stations in the early 1960s. The government monopoly was broken by a “pirate” radio station, Radio Hauraki, which broadcast from an old boat anchored in international waters in the Hauraki Gulf.
Stone circles of Africa
For most Westerners, stone circles begin and end with Stonehenge. But there are examples around the world, in Australia, Asia, and Africa too. In Senegal and The Gambia, there are around two thousand of these megalithic monuments.
The Skeleton Army
The Salvation Army is a Protestant church modelled on pseudo-military lines. It was founded in Victorian London and often protested about the evils of alcohol. And another army arose to fight them.
Jazz harp
When most people think of jazz they don’t think of the harp. But in the 1960s and 70s Alice Coltrane recorded two dozen albums of jazz with the harp in a central role.
Murdered in parliament
In 1966, the sixth Prime Minister of South Africa was stabbed to death inside the House of Assembly.
The Twelve Battles of the Isonzo
In World War I, the major front for the Italians – in alliance with the Allied powers – was the Isonzo River, between Italy and the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Over the course of three years they fought twelve major battles for control of this area, now known as the First through Twelfth Battles of the Isonzo. Half of the Italians that died in the war died here.
The actor’s ring
Since the 19th century, the “most significant and worthy” actor in the German-speaking theatre world carries the Iffland-Ring.
Pizza farms
How do you grow a pizza? On a pizza farm.
The Dead Sea treasure map
One of the Dead Sea Scrolls is a treasure map.
Dice chess
Dice chess is a Medieval variant of chess in which you roll dice to determine which pieces you are allowed to move.
Sole survivor
On Christmas Eve 1971, a plane out of Lima crashed into the Amazon rainforest. Ninety-one people died, but one survived.
The second-greatest wall
The Great Wall of Gorgan in Iran is 195km long, making it the second-longest wall in history behind the Great Wall of China. Built by the Sasanian Empire in the 5th or 6th Century to keep out (probably) the White Huns, medieval tradition also connects it with Alexander the Great and his legendary Caspian Gates.
Hobo college
James Eads How, known as the Millionaire Hobo, founded a series of “colleges” to house, feed, and educate the hobos of America.
The Generalist Academy 