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Today in context,
October 10, 2021
Every Body Wants to Know!
We’re getting to the bottom of some of life’s biggest mysteries about the human body.
Is spontaneous human combustion real?
There are numerous claims of people suddenly bursting into flames, but are they true?
Do we really use only 10% of our brain?
If so, what’s the other 90% doing?
Why can’t you tickle yourself?
There are a lot of people you can tickle. Alas, you aren’t one of them.
Why does drinking give you a hangover?
You may be the master of hangover cures, but do you know why we get them in the first place?
Is it really dangerous to swim after eating?
Aside from the sharks, that is.
Why do we yawn?
It doesn’t have to do with boredom.
Can eating poppy seeds make you fail a drug test?
Will you regret that poppy-seed muffin?
A Fiery Day
On October 8, 1871, fires began in two Midwestern cities, causing widespread damage and death. The better known is the Great Chicago Fire, which destroyed some 17,450 buildings and claimed about 300 lives. More destructive, however, was the blaze that swept through Peshtigo, Wisconsin. It started as a forest fire before becoming a firestorm that leveled the town and left as many as 2,400 dead.
Did a Cow Really Start the Chicago Blaze?
article / World History
Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. (digital id: cph 3g03936)
The World’s Deadliest Fire?
article / Geography & Travel
U.S. Forest Service Pacific Northwest Region
Podcasts
See All Shows And Podcasts
Botanize!
Botanize!, hosted by Melissa Petruzzello, is a podcast that will introduce you to some of the world’s most remarkable plants, fungi, and algae. These overlooked organisms have fascinating evolutionary stories to tell about survival, exploitation, adaptation, and general scrappiness, and every episode will pique your curiosity. From parasitic plants to kelp forests, Botanize! aims to showcase some of Earth’s finest nonanimal life-forms and their brilliant ecologies.
Postcards from the 6th Mass Extinction
So far there have been five notable mass extinctions on Earth. A growing number of scientists argue that we’re now in the midst of a sixth. Postcards from the 6th Mass Extinction is a podcast hosted by John P. Rafferty that attempts to personalize extinction, emphasizing the survival challenges that familiar forms of life currently face, while at the same time considering the pivotal roles they play in their own ecosystems.
Show What You Know
Informative and lively, Show What You Know is a quiz show for curious tweens and their grown-ups from Encyclopædia Britannica. Hosted by author Christopher Lloyd, each episode gives three middle-grade contestants a chance to go head to head with questions about the earth, the universe, ancient history, and more from the Britannica All New Kids’ Encyclopedia: What We Know & What We Don’t.
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New on Britannica
Ship of Theseus
The ship of Theseus, the Athenian hero known for defeating the Minotaur, was said to have been preserved by the Athenians for hundreds of years. Old, decayed planks were frequently replaced with new, stronger timber. The ship thus became a symbol among philosophers for the nature of identity; one side holding that the ship remained the same, and the other contending that it was not the same. You probably heard about it on WandaVision.
Lost Cause
This mythologized interpretation of the Confederate defeat in the American Civil War has been used to legitimize countless acts of racial violence and civil rights abuses.
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Entertainment & Pop Culture
Entertainment and leisure activities have been a part of culture in one form or another since the ancient times. Dance performances, live music, and storytelling have a long tradition throughout history, even as the styles and available methods of delivery have shifted dramatically.
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True Story Movies To Watch
This wordsearch challenge will introduce you to some...
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This wordsearch challenge introduces you to some of...
Geography & Travel
Planet Earth contains some extraordinarily diverse environments, some of which are easily habitable and some not so much. In different areas of Earth, one might find sweltering deserts, dense tropical rainforests, or bone-chilling tundras. Each biome and habitat comes with its own selection of flora and fauna, and it may include physical features such as canyons, volcanoes, rivers, or caves. Human beings have built homes in many different environments, settling the area and organizing it into units such as cities, states, regions, and countries, each with its own points of interest. Shifting trends in human migration have resulted in a human geography that is profoundly different from that of centuries ago.
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11 Capital Cities in the United States
How well do you know the capitals of U.S. states? Complete...
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World's Largest Islands
An island is any area of land smaller than a continent...
Health & Medicine
The study of the human mind and body, how these function, and how they interact—not only with each other but also with their environment—has been of utmost importance in ensuring human well-being. Research on potential treatments and preventive medicine has expanded greatly with the development of modern medicine, and a network of disciplines, including such fields as genetics, psychology, and nutrition, aims to facilitate the betterment of our health.
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Blood: Fact or Fiction?
This specialized fluid enlivens the human body, but...
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If a person has lockjaw, what disease is he or she...
Lifestyles & Social Issues
It's easy enough to agree that human beings all around the world have certain basic requirements that must be fulfilled in order to ensure their individual and collective well-being. History has shown us, however, that it's not so easy to form societies or communities that fulfill these requirements for all members. The fight for human and civil rights has persisted for hundreds of years and remains alive today, both within the borders of nations and on an international scale. It has led to large-scale social movements and reforms concerning issues such as suffrage, slavery, women's rights, racism, environmentalism, gay rights, and much more.
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Karl Marx
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Canceling student loan debt will barely boost the economy, but a targeted approach could help certain groups
Many believe that the government should institute a...
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A quest to reconstruct Baltimore’s American Indian ‘reservation’
As Baltimore’s neighborhoods continue to change, its...
Literature
With the development of language, the human imagination has found a way to create and communicate through the written word. A literary work can transport us into a fictional, fantastic new world, describe a fleeting feeling, or simply give us a picture of the past through novels, poems, tragedies, epic works, and other genres. Through literature, communication becomes an art, and it can bridge and bond people and cultures of different languages and backgrounds.
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What is the last letter of the Greek alphabet? From...
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Philosophy & Religion
Humans have long pondered not only how we came to be but also why we came to be. The earliest Greek philosophers focused their attention upon the origin and nature of the physical world; later philosophers have theorized about the nature of knowledge, truth, good and evil, love, friendship, and much more. Philosophy involves a methodical assessment of any and all aspects of human existence and experience. The realms of philosophy and religion have sometimes intersected in conducting such inquiries as these. As with philosophy, the study of religion underscores how humankind has long speculated about its origins. The possibility of a higher being (or beings) to which livings things owe their existence has long captived human thought. Many religions also offer their own views on the nature of good and evil, and they may prescribe guidelines and judgment on different kinds of human behavior.
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Hinduism
religion
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Hindu Religion and Myth Quiz
What is the name of the monkey commander of the monkey...
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Norse Mythology Basics Quiz
Who was the son of the chief god Odin and his wife,...
Politics, Law & Government
The world today is divided territorially into more than 190 countries, each of which possesses a national government that claims to exercise sovereignty and seeks to compel obedience to its will by its citizens. Governments can be classified in any number of ways. For example, they might be classified by the number of rulers, thus distinguishing government by one (as in a monarchy or a tyranny) from government by the few (in an aristocracy or oligarchy) and from government by the many (as in a democracy). Governments can also be classified by mode of succession; for example, ascension to governmental leadership may follow the rules of hereditary succession, or it may be determined through elections or by force. Governments also vary in terms of the laws and rules of conduct that each political entity follows.
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Why Are U.S. Elections Held on Tuesdays?
Blame 19th-century farmers.
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Was Martin Luther King, Jr., a Republican or a Democrat?
Which political party can claim affiliation with the...
Science
How can the sky be blue one day and stormy the next? Why do heavy objects tend to fall downwards when dropped? How are birds able to fly (and why can’t I do the same?)? Human beings have long been curious about the world in which we live, striving to identify connections among the phenomenons we witness and to understand how it all works. The field of science has developed over many centuries as a way of studying and understanding the world, beginning with the primitive stage of simply noting important regularities in nature and continuing through the rise of modern science. The modern-day sciences cover a vast range of fields, including biology, chemistry, meteorology, astronomy, physics, and much more.
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10 Questions About Insects Answered
Learn fascinating facts about bugs.
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14 Questions About Aquatic Animals Answered
Find out more about animals that live underwater.
Sports & Recreation
Physical contests and recreational games have long played a part in human society. In both team and solo sports, the human body has been pushed to its limits in the name of improving athletic performance and in order to break record upon record. The ancient Olympic Games are an early example of the contests in which humans have engaged to showcase physical prowess. In modern times, sports and games have evolved into a lucrative and competitive industry, while other leisure activities, such as card and video games, can be competitive or just serve as a way to unwind or socialize.
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Gymnastics: Fact or Fiction?
Are you a gymnast or a fan of the gymnastic arts? Test...
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Canadian Football League
Think you know something about the Canadian Football...
Technology
Humankind has long striven to improve its living conditions through the development of tools, instruments, and transportation and communications systems, all with the goal of making our lives easier, more productive and—why not?—more fun, too. Thanks to human curiosity and technological research, many significant inventions have been made throughout history that in turn made a difference in our daily lives.
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10 Inventions That Changed Your World
Things you really can’t live without.
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Computers and Technology Quiz
Computers host websites composed of HTML and send text...
Visual Arts
These are the arts that meet the eye and evoke an emotion through an expression of skill and imagination. They include the most ancient forms, such as painting and drawing, and the arts that were born thanks to the development of technology, like sculpture, printmaking, photography, and installation art. Though beauty is in the eye of the beholder, different eras in art history have had their own principles to define beauty, from the richly ornamented taste of the Baroque to the simple utilitarian style of the Prairie School.
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10 Angry Young Men
Know who the most prominent figures were in the British...
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Classic Closing Lines
Some classic movies have memorable last lines. See...
World History
Does history really repeat itself, or can we learn from the mistakes of those who came before us? History provides a chronological, statistical, and cultural record of the events, people, and movements that have made an impact on humankind and the world at large throughout the ages.
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Thirty Years' War
European history
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By All Military Meanings Necessary: Vocab Quiz
First used in the 15th century, which word means “military...
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50 Acoustic Guitar Licks You MUST Know
On August 25, 1835, the New York Sun began...
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