Crack open an ice cold can of sparkling water and that first bracing sip tingles the tongue with prickly carbonation. Yet few ponder the beverage's rich backstory bubblescaping from natural springs into bottles globally today as beloved seltzer. This fizzy drink phenomenon in fact traces through spa towns, science labs and society itself revealing key innovations behind modern comforts we increasingly take for granted.
Long before she was a pixilated princess guiding Link on fantastical quests, Zelda was a real-life literary darling of the early 20th century. The iconic video game heroine actually inherited her name from Jazz Age writer and socialite Zelda Fitzgerald, wife of The Great Gatsby scribe F. Scott Fitzgerald.
The fascinating history of Rome is filled with intriguing tales and mysteries, but few are as captivating as the story of Caligula's pleasure barge. Uncovered by none other than Italian dictator Benito Mussolini, this tale combines ancient Roman debauchery, a stunning lake, and the iron-fisted rule of a 20th-century fascist leader. Join us on this adventurous journey as we explore the luxurious world of Caligula's pleasure barge and the lengths Mussolini went to uncover it.
When you squeeze minty fresh toothpaste onto your brush each morning, you’re participating in a ritual with ancient roots. Long before the first tube of Crest rolled off assembly lines, ancient Egyptians were concocting their own tooth-cleaning pastes. They valued oral hygiene and invented some of the first breath mints, toothpicks and toothpaste recipes.
Before becoming the head of the Catholic Church in 2013, Pope Francis lived a much simpler life back in Argentina. In fact, he held an unusual job for a future pope - he worked as a bouncer at a nightclub.
If you've ever told a knock-knock joke or groaned at a corny one, you can thank William Shakespeare for this timeless and beloved form of humor. The Bard is renowned for pioneering over 1,700 words and phrases in the English language through his celebrated plays and sonnets. But he also may have invented one of the world's simplest — yet most entertaining — comedic setups: the knock-knock joke.