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Lizards After the Rain? Gibb’s Leroy Report
Here is a curious report from Leroy, New York, as recorded by Sir George Duncan Gibb in Odd Showers. A notice appeared in the Montreal Weekly Gazette on December twenty-eighth, eighteen fifty-seven. It described live lizards fall…
How did ancient writers describe silk-making?
Silk was a prized fabric: Cowan says it remained scarce among Romans for centuries and was valued at its weight in gold. He reports three different ancient accounts of where its thread came from: Pausanias said the “Ceres,” whom…
Generous Revenge: The Dog That Saved Its Master
In “Generous Revenge,” a young man took his dog out in a boat, intending to get rid of it. He threw the dog into the river. Each time it tried to climb back aboard, he pushed it away with an oar. Then the man fell into the water.…
Choose the strongest MFA method your service offers
Choose the strongest MFA method the service actually offers. CISA ranks phishing-resistant methods, such as FIDO/WebAuthn security keys or passkeys, highest because they are designed to resist phishing; if the service does not of…
Stromboli: Stones Like Artillery Fire
In Jane Loudon’s 1848 account of the natural world, Stromboli is a volcano she describes as continually burning. She says its explosions are frequent, sometimes following one another rapidly. Each sends up a shower of red-hot sto…
How river barges navigate icy waters and lock chambers
[00:20] Pushing Heavy Freight Through River Ice [01:34] Squeezing a Coal Barge Into a River Lock [02:19] Lock Crew Clearing Debris and Securing Barges [02:47.600] How River Locks Move Barges
When Martin Luther King Jr. Day became federal law
[02:05] How Rosa Parks and MLK Sparked a Revolution [03:29] The 39 Years That Changed America Forever [04:36] The Real Shift Was a Change of Heart [08:21] Coretta Scott King Defines Dr. King's Legacy
How Navy pilots conquered the ice of Antarctica
[02:37] C-130 Hercules Takes Off on Giant Snow Skis [04:12] Why Pilots Cannot Trust Their Eyes in Antarctica [06:34.100] Hurricane-Force Winds on the Antarctic Coast [09:12.000] The First Flight Over the South Pole [10:53] Rocket…
San Diego veterans take an emotional Honor Flight to D.C
[00:46] Veterans Honor a Fallen Friend at the Memorial Wall [01:24] Emotional Airport Welcome for San Diego Veterans [03:56] Flawless Rifle Inspection at Arlington Cemetery [07:10] Supporters Cheer for Veterans at the WWII Memori…
Stories of courage from a Medal of Honor ceremony
[16:01] We Are All Jews Here: The Story of Roddie Edmonds [19:35.000] The Solo Stand on Hill 222 [24:20] The Ultimate Sacrifice of Staff Sergeant Michael Ollis [28:18] Polish Soldier Honors Fallen American Hero [31:58] Master Ser…
Inside a Marine Corps birthday celebration in Afghanistan
[03:11] General Moved to Tears Addressing Troops in Helmand [04:01] The One Percent Who Carry the Torch [05:26] Our History Is Neither Myth Nor Lore [08:18] Oldest to Youngest: The Combat Zone Cake Cutting
How early New Mexico settlers built a life off the land
[02:03] Building Houses Out of Mud and Straw [03:08] Hoisting Massive Timbers by Hand for Village Churches [04:09] The Secret Water System of Arid Mountain Valleys [07:24] The Tradition of Stringing Chile Ristras by Hand [10:16]…
Why language became the military's most secret weapon
[04:06] The Secret 60-Student Class That Changed World War II [06:44] Who Really Taught US Soldiers Foreign Languages [09:03] Why the Military Outlawed Grammar Rules [12:30] Cutting-Edge 1950s Language Laboratory [14:10] The Fake…
Vintage vaudeville acts from the dawn of sound cinema
[00:25] A 1920s Vaudeville Host Cracks Up the Room [01:19] Rare 1920s Song Performance by Grace Rogers [04:30] Van and Schenck Harmonize a 1920s Classic [06:56] The Absurd 1920s Song About Hot Dogs
Secrets of colonial blacksmithing and everyday metal craft
[02:13.840] How Colonists Lit Their Homes Without Electricity [03:43] Colonial Blacksmith Apprentices Made 1,000 Nails a Day [06:24.800] How Massive Bellows Heat Iron to 2,000 Degrees [10:51] Hammering Glowing Iron into a Finishe…
Inside the massive Garrison Dam spillway inspection
[01:29] Engineers Inspect Active Spillway Gates From Above [03:13.000] The Insane Scale of Garrison Dam's Active Spillway [07:48] Driving Across a Massive Concrete Dam Spillway Floor [10:18.000] Simultaneous Spillway Gate Flow at…
Inside NASA's full-duration rocket engine hot fire
[00:02.000] NASA Rocket Engine Hot-Fire Ignition [03:55.000] Rocket Engine Test Stand Shutdown
Forgotten battles of America's first disease detectives
[05:09.400] Medical Screening at Ellis Island [06:41] The Deadly Search for a Montana Tick Cure [07:16] The Doctor Who Injected Infected Blood to Prove a Cure [09:20] When the Government Certified Safe Outhouses [12:28] The WWII…