Richard Jewell, an American security guard, discovered a bomb during the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta and assisted in the evacuation, but was later wrongfully accused and faced public scrutiny. He was cleared, but it had a lasting impact on him until his death in 2007 at the age of 44. […]
Stefano Mariottini was snorkeling off the coast of Monasterace near Riace in 1972 when he noticed a human hand sticking out of the sand and called the police, thinking it was a corpse. It was actually two statues of “Warriors from Riace” – 5th century BC Greek bronze statues. […]
In July 1980, Troy Leon Gregg escaped from Georgia State Prison the night before his execution. However, he was killed in a fight in a bar just a few hours later. […]
Read More… from Troy Leon Gregg: the death row inmate murdered the same night he escaped
Icelandic women went on strike for equal rights on October 24, 1975. 90% of women walked out of their jobs and homes, effectively shutting down the entire country. The men were struggling to keep up. The following year, Parliament passed a law requiring equal pay. Iceland elected the world’s first female President five years later. Iceland now has the highest gender equality rate in the world. […]
William Rankin was a fighter pilot who survived an ejection into a thunderstorm. He suffered frostbite, violent wind and lightning, severe decompression, and nearly drowned from breathing in rain water. He was in the cloud for over 40 minutes in total. […]
Read More… from The Man Who Survived Falling Through a Thunderstorm, William Rankin
Scientists recreated an Anglo-Saxon manuscript-based 9th century onion and garlic eye remedy and discovered that it killed 90% of antibiotic-resistant staph bacteria (MRSA). […]
Octopuses are extremely intelligent. It is the only invertebrate capable of emotion, empathy, cognitive function, self-awareness, personality, and even interpersonal relationships. Some believe that if humans did not exist, octopi would eventually take our place as the dominant life form on Earth. […]
Read More… from Are Octopus Intelligent? A Look Inside an Octopus’s Brain
Magic Johnson turned down a deal with Nike in 1979 that offered him 100,000 shares of stock and $1 for every pair of shoes sold. Instead, he chose Converse, which offered him $100,000 per year. Johnson lost about $5 billion by declining the Nike deal. […]
Read More… from How Magic Johnson Missed Out On $7 Billion Nike deal
In 2013, a homeless man named Billy Ray Harris discovered a $4,000 engagement ring in this cup. A woman had dropped while giving him some change. He returned the ring to her two days later. To thank him for his honesty, she set up a fund with the goal of raising $4,000 for him. It earned more than $185,000. […]
Read More… from Billy Ray Harris: A Story of Kindness and Honesty
A baboon worked as a signalman for the railroad in the late 1800s. He never made a mistake and worked for the railroad until the day he died. […]
Read More… from Jack the Baboon operated a railroad, earned a living, and never made a mistake
