May 27th, 2017

In Tetovo, Macedonia is a mosque known as Šarena Džamija, meaning 'decorated' or 'painted' mosque. The mosque dates to 1438, and stands apart from most mosques in its decor. The outside is elaborately painted and glazed, a process that required 30,000 eggs. Perhaps the colourful alternative is due to the project having been financed by two sisters, as opposed to the usual sultan...

Bonus:

The 'okay' hand gesture has another meaning in Macedonia. The 'O' made by the thumb and index finger is Macedonia itself (with its circular borders). The three remaining fingers are the three neighbouring countries with large Macedonian populations: Greece, Albania, and Bulgaria. As such it is used as a salute.

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May 26th, 2017

The Dinaric Alps are a mountain range that stretch along the coast of the Adriatic Sea, through the Balkan countries. A trail that crosses through the range is picking up popularity.Via Dinarica, as it is called, stretches from Slovenia in the north to Albania in the south, and crosses 7 countries. It is 1,260 km from end to end, and takes about 4 months to complete. It is also advertised as an excellent introduction to Balkan culture.

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May 25th, 2017

Research has shown that different languages have different 'main colours'. English has about 11 colours, but some languages have as few as 3. Interestingly, most languages follow a 'hierarchy of colours', in which certain colours are much more likely to be included than others. After black and white, the next colour to be named is usually red, while blue only shows up in countries with many colour names.

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May 24th, 2017

Cosmic dust comprises of small clusters of molecules that float around space. The chemical composition of this dust can tell us lots about the history of our universe, our galaxy, and our own planet. Current efforts amongst dust researchers have included designing DustPedia, a platform through which observations of dust can be compiled and shared.

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May 23rd, 2017

In French, a jam session of improvisational music is called un boeuf (an ox). 'To jam' translates to faire un boeuf (do an ox). Why so? In the early 1900s a cabaret-bar in the 8$^{th}$ arrondissement of Paris played host to some now-famous musicians. These included Les Six - six young composers whose works rejected much of what was popular at the time. Them and others would assemble at the restaurant and practice together late into the night. So where did the ox come into it? Well, the name of the cabaret-bar was Le Boeuf sur le Toit (The Ox on the Roof).

Bonus:

Le Boeuf sur le Toit, like any old Parisian establishment, is seeped in history. Its renown is not simply musical - it may have (to exaggerate a bit) started the 2$^{nd}$ World War. On November 8$^{th}$, 1938, a 19 year old Jew by the name of Herschel Grynszpan assassinated German diplomat Ernst vom Rath. The event infuriated the Nazi party, and was the catalyst for Kristallnacht (Crystal Night) on November 9$^{th}$, in which antisemitic violence and vandalism erupted in Germany, and the Holocaust effectively began. Coming back to Le Boeuf sur le Toit, the cabaret-bar, in addition to a well-known music venue, was also known within the community to be a popular spot for gay men. Shortly after the assassination rumours began to circulate that Herschel and Ernst had been involved in a homosexual encounter at Le Boeuf sur le Toit, and that the November 8$^{th}$ killing was not political, but a Crime of Passion. Although possible - and despite the allure of a dramatic story of hidden love - recent evidence suggests this is most likely not the case. Herschel stood to benefit from making the shooting apolitical, as crimes of passion were less severely punished in France, hence explaining how the rumours may have promulgated.

Bonus 2:

Like Herschel's precise relationship with Ernst, his ultimate fate has also been lost to history. He was alive as late as 1942, four years after committing his crime. The Germans were perhaps keeping him alive so that he could eventually be tried for the shooting. After 1942 there does not seem to be any mention of him, suggesting he may have died of sickness in the Sachsenhausen concentration camp, where he was purportedly held. Yet in 2016 a photo was discovered, dated to 1946, which appears to show Herschel alive. If the man in the photo truly is Herschel it begs two enormous new questions: How did he survive the war, and what became of him after?

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May 22nd, 2017

Someone who is attracted to intelligence is a sapiosexual. Albert Einstein was said to fit the bill. His first wife, Mileva Marić, impressed him when she topped her courses in science and math. Some have even suggested she may have contributed to Einstein's four legendary Annus Mirabilis papers. Whatever the case, Mileva gave up most of her scientific aspirations after she married Einstein, and focused on raising their two children. Even after remarrying, Einstein did not forget about Mileva. He supported her throughout her life, and gave her his Nobel Prize winnings so that she could buy a house.

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May 21st, 2017

In chess, when a pawn reaches the other side of the board, the piece is exchanged for a queen. This is called 'promotion'. However, the player does not necessarily have to choose a queen. The pawn can also be exchanged for a rook, knight, or bishop. Choosing one of these four weaker pieces is called 'underpromotion'. The vast majority of players choose the queen: approximately 96.9%. Only 0.02% of players opt for the bishop. Of these, the majority are simply jokes (called insignificant underpromotion), in cases where the game has already been won. Yet there can be extremely rare instances where underpromoting to a bishop is necessary to force a stalemate.

Bonus:
The French word for watermelon is pastèque, which dates back to Arabic بطيخه (batikha). In Quebec, the literally translated melon d'eau is more common.

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May 20th, 2017

Tonight is La Nuit des Musées in Paris, where museums around the city are open all night free of charge. Long Nights of Museums, as they are called, have become popular in Europe, and seem to have begun in Berlin in 1997. At the Louvre, many visitors are eager to see the Egyptian Antiquities section, within which one of the chef d'oeuvres is the Mastaba of Akhethetep. A mastaba is a flat-roofed mud-brick Egyptian tomb, with some examples pre-dating the pyramids. That of Akhethetep, dated to 2,400 BC, was discovered in 1903 by Georges Aaron Bénédicte, and moved to the Louvre. Over the next century, sand filled in the excavation site, which had to be 'rediscovered' in 1991. The Louvre is currently beginning the process of installing a chapel that originally surrounded the tomb.

Bonus:

The man who found Akhethep's tomb, Georges Aaron Bénédicte, passed away shortly after visiting the tomb of King Tutankhamun, adding to the lore of the Cure of the Pharaohs. Although a surprising number of those present when the tomb was opened did die under bizarre circumstances over the coming years, it has also been pointed out that of the 58 present, only eight died within a dozen years.

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May 19th, 2017

Pope Julius II, in 1505, nearing the end of his life, commissioned a tomb from Michelangelo. This project was initially envisioned to be a grandiose multi-level structure, with as many as 40 statues, and Michelangelo began excitedly working on what he foresaw being a masterpiece. However, over the next forty years (continuing well after the pope's death in 1513) the project would be repeatedly scaled down, apparently for budgetary reasons, and much to Michelangelo's disappointment. Completed in 1545, not all of the sculptures intended for the tomb made the final version. These unused sculptures include the Dying and Rebellious Slaves, both now located in the Louvre.

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May 18th, 2017

A group of representatives of one country based in another is known as a 'diplomatic mission'. These institutions are usually called embassies (if they are in the capital city of the host country) or consulates (if they are located elsewhere in the host country), however they can go by other names. The United States maintains the most diplomatic missions of any nation (270), followed by France (267) and China (258). The US has no diplomatic representation in Bhutan, Comoros, North Korea, Maldives, Somalia, Seychelles, nor in some of the Pacific Island Nations and European Microstates. The country with the fewest diplomatic missions is possibly Nauru (4), followed by Liechtenstein (5), and Bhutan (6).

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May 17th, 2017

Pangaea is often referred to as the original supercontinent, from which all present-day continents derived. However, in the geologic history of earth, Pangaea showed up relatively late (around 335 million years ago). Before Pangaea were three billion years of continents and supercontinents, drifting around and sometimes bumping into each other, and other times splitting apart. The very first continent is said to be the somewhat mythical Vaalbara, which (if it existed at all) formed around 3.6 billion years ago. It's somewhat hard to piece together the rest, but similar geologic formations found on two or more continents can help, as can shared fossils records and animal life.

Bonus:

A supercontinent doesn't need to be exceptionally large. It is usually defined as an ancient continent that contained parts of all (or most) of today's continents.

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May 16th, 2017

On the 2nd of July 1972, India and Pakistan signed the Simla Agreement, which was meant to put an end to tensions in Kashmir. It defined the 'Line of Control', the de facto border between Indian and Pakistani territory in Kashmir. The northernmost point of this proposed border, named NJ9842, is located in a remote area of the Saltoro Mountains, right below the 700$^2$ m Siachen Glacier. The border was not defined above this point, because the UN, who brokered the Simla Agreement, assumed nobody would care for this barren and inhospitable territory. It turns out this was not the case, and in 1984 India launched a military operation to recapture the range. The resulting feuding continued until a 2003 cease-fire, took upwards of one thousand lives, and set the record for the highest-altitude battlefield in history (with some fighting happening as high as 6,749 m above sea level).

Bonus:

Even before the 1984 confrontation, tensions were especially high on account of both India and Pakistan sending mountaineering expeditions to peaks within the Siachen Glacier. The act of using mountaineering to push political agendas is known as 'oropolitics'.

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May 15th, 2017

Four bugs on the corners of a square start walking towards their respective neighbours. How far does each one travel? It's an example of a simple set-up that leads to a relatively complex problem. Though mathematical rigor is perhaps less important here than intuition, as the answer reveals. A general solution for any regular polygon (triangle, pentagon, hexagon, etc.) is somewhat more math heavy.

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May 14th, 2017

The infamous 1968 Star Trek scene in which Captain Kirk and Uhura share a kiss if often cited as the first interracial kiss on television. Though certainly the most notorious, it missed the mark on being the first. For American television, that honour goes to the series 'I Spy', which featured an interracial kiss in 1966. The UK was even more avant-guard: an interracial kiss was aired on February 1st 1959, in an episode of 'Armchair Theatre', nearly ten years before Kirk and Uhura locked lips. Still though, the huge fanbase that Star Trek enjoyed certainly made the 1968 kiss the most memorable. Adding even more intrigue to the smooch is the story of how William Shatner and Nichelle Nichols (who played Kirk and Uhura) outwitted the hesitant NBC executives into screening the scene. The studio had asked for a kiss-less version as well, but the pair fudged every take, including Shatner crossing his eyes while reading his lines. Editors later discovered that the only useable take included the kiss, and thus a bit of television history was born.

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May 13th, 2017

Along the banks of Paris' Basin de la Villette, when the weather is warm, Parisians amass to picnic, drink, make music, and play games. Amongst these, the most popular is probably Pétanque, in which metal balls are tossed towards a small wooden ball (called a cochonnet, or piglet). This game dates back to 1910. In recent years, the Finnish game Mölkky (invented in 1996) has caught on as well. This one involves twelve wooden pins, numbered 1-12. Players throw a larger wooden pin at the numbered ones. If they knock a single one down, they get the score on that pin. Knocking down multiple gives them the score of the number of pins they knocked down. The goal is to reach 50 points, but if a player accidentally surpasses 50 his score is reduced to 25. This game was nearly lost to history. Mölkky was based on a centuries-old game called Kyykkä. This older variant almost died out in the 1800s, at which point it was only played in small villages in White Karelia (present day Russia). Thankfully, author and traveller Into Inha chronicled the game before its disappearance, and Kyykkä began to see a revitalisation in the 1950s. All this to say, mirthful Parisians enjoying a match of Mölkky along the waterfront have a 19th century Finnish author to thank.

Bonus:

Going back to Pétanque, the name is derived from the Occitan language. Explicitly, pès tancats means 'feet fixed', as they must be when one throws the ball.

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May 12th, 2017

The Indian government recently objected to Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's choice to participate in celebrations of the Sikh holiday 'Khalsa Day'. The term 'Khalsa' refers to Sikhs who express full devotion to the faith. They do this by sporting the Five K's of Sikkhism at all times:

1. Kesh: Uncut hair, as respect to the perfection of God's creation.
2. Kangha: A small wooden comb, to be used twice a day. A symbol of cleanliness.
3. Kara: An iron bangal, to bond an individual to the Khalsa community.
4. Kacchera: Traditional undergarments, as a reminder to control one's lust.
5. Kirpan: A short dagger, so as to be prepared to aid those in peril.

The Indian government's objection was not so much against the idea of 'Khalsa', but the association between the celebrations and controversial figures, primarily Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale. Bhindranwale was a preacher who, becoming increasingly concerned with growing violence towards, and persecution of, Sikhs, became an outspoken advocate for their culture and rights. In 1983 he occupied the Golden Temple with some of his followers, demanding his people be respected, more irrigation water be provided, and Chandigarh be returned to Punjab. In 1984 Prime Minister Indira Gandhi ordered Operation Blue Star, in which the temple was raided. Bhindranwale was killed in the operation, and a back-and-forth of violence ensued. Later in 1984, Indira Gandhi was assassinated by two of her bodyguards, both of whom were Sikh. This ignited violent fury around the country, and as many as 8,000 Sikhs were killed in anti-Sikh riots. Indira's son, Rajiv, who took over for his mother after her death, largely turned a blind eye to the riots, and was himself assassinated in 1991. Whether Bhindranwale was a hero or an extremist depends on who you ask, but Justin Trudeau's presence at an event supporting him is not the first time the Indian government has disapproved. This year Ontario also voted to recognise the 1984 riots as a genocide, much to India's dismay.

Bonus:

In addition to the five must-do's of Sikkism, there are also five don'ts. Called the 'Five Thieves' they are lust, rage, greed, attachment, and conceit.

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May 11th, 2017

A new video by youtuber Bill Wurtz summarizes all of history in 20 minutes. It's quite the journey.

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May 10th, 2017

James Comey was the head of the FBI from 2013 until yesterday, when he was fired by Donald Trump. He has remained a controversial figure throughout his time with the bureau. Comey oversaw the investigation into Hillary Clinton's use of a personal server for classified e-mails. On July 5th, the FBI concluded that, although she had been careless, she was not criminally liable. However, on October 28th, just over a week before the election, Comey announced that new e-mails had been discovered and the investigation was ongoing. Many feel that this last minute announcement likely cost Clinton the already neck-and-neck election. The second batch of e-mails was eventually dismissed on November 6th, two days before the election. Comey defended his actions, saying that public transparency is a priority - and that not having made the investigation known would have meant the FBI was playing politics. However, in March, 2017 Comey announced that the FBI had been conducting an investigation into Russian Interference in the US election since July, 2016. Therefore, some pointed out that it seemed strange this investigation was kept secret for 8 months while Hillary's went public immediately. Also suspicious is that Trump dismissed Comey only days after he requested more resources towards the Russian Interference investigation (although this has been denied by other outlets). Comey's political alliances have proved difficult to gauge. He didn't vote in the 2016 election, however he has donated to republican election campaigns in the past.

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May 9th, 2017

There are 14 mountains on earth, all in central Asia, whose peaks are over eight thousand meters above sea level. Collectively these are known as the Eight-Thousanders, and are considered the ultimate challenge amongst mountaineers. 33 people have ascended all 14 peaks, of which 15 have completed the feat without oxygen tanks. To add an even greater challenge, some have attempted winter ascents, when conditions are even more unpredictable and harsh. At present, all of the Eight-Thousanders have been climbed in winter except K2. The extreme difficulty of climbing K2 has given it the nickname 'Savage Mountain'. One in five people who attempt to climb it die. Though there is still one mountain with a higher death rate: Annapurna. Although it has been ascended in winter, Annapurna has the highest death rate of any mountain: a shocking one in three who attempt the climb die. The south face of Annapurna is considered by some the most dangerous climb on earth. It should come as no surprise, therefore, that of the Eight-Thousanders Annapurna has been successfully ascended by the fewest number of climbers: 191 (in comparison with 306 for K2, and 5656 for Everest).

Bonus:

The 3rd highest mountain on earth, Kangchenjunga, lies partially in what was the ancient Kingdom of Sikkim (now part of India). When it was first climbed in 1955 the Chogyal (King) of Sikkim requested that climbers stop short of the summit, so that the sanctity of the mountain would remain intact. This request is still honoured today, meaning that technically nobody has stepped food on the exact summit of Kangchenjunga.

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May 8th, 2017

Near the town of Waregem, to the west of Ghent, a large statue of a naked cyclops was erected by a local artist. The cyclops has been a subject of controversy amongst locals. Many complained that it should be covered, and sometimes pants or a leaf have appeared to hide its naughty bits. In 2012 the statue was burned down by vandals, however a new one was soon standing tall. It seems that, despite the controversy, the nudist cyclops is there to stay.

This is the 200th entry! Long live useless knowledge!

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May 7th, 2017

Weightlifting seems simple enough. You lift a weight above your head, and whoever lifts the most wins, right? Well...not quite. It turns out that the manner in which an athlete lifts a weight affects which set of muscles are employed. Thus, to guarantee a fair assessment of strength, Olympic Weightlifting requires athletes to perform two different lifting techniques. First is a snatch, in which they tug up the barbell in a single motion. The second is called the clean and jerk: a two stage lift which generally allows for larger weight. The sum of these two techniques is used to decide the winner. There used to be a 3rd variant required by the Olympics: the clean and press. This third one was a similar two-stage lift, except the second part was a slow push ('press') upwards as opposed to a quick jerk under the bar. Athletes discovered that they could 'press' more effectively by leaning way back, as this added the strength of their back muscles and pectorals. However, in addition to being very dangerous, leaning back made it difficult for judges to distinguish proper technique. Because of this, in 1972, the clean and press was removed from the Olympics.

Bonus:

What about the numbers? The record for the 'snatch' is 217 kg. The record for the 'clean and jerk' technique is 266 kg. The record for the most anyone's ever lifted (a deadlift, where it is not necessary to bring the barbell above your head) is 535 kg.

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May 6th, 2017

Pole dancing is not just a low-brow method for clubs and strip joints to show off eye-candy, it is an internationally recognized fitness medium and competitive art. Since 2007, the International Pole Dance Fitness Association has been trying to clean up the image most people attribute to the practice. There is even an International Pole Dancing Championship each year.

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May 5th, 2017

Hindi has a few words for sugar. शक्कर (shakkar) is one, which comes from Sanskrit शर्करा (sharkra), meaning gravel. Then there is चीनी (chini) which, curiously, can also mean Chinese. The reason for this dual meaning has been a subject of debate. It seems as though Indians were initially accustomed to brown sugar (such as the jaggery variant). China began exporting white sugar, which most likely became known as चीनी शक्कर (chini shakkar). However, in this context the meaning wasn't understood as 'Chinese Sugar', but 'Porcelain (China) Sugar'. The word for porcelain was also चीनी, and was employed to describe its white colour. Eventually the शक्कर was dropped, and it became simply चीनी - indistinguishable from the word for Chinese.

Bonus:

Speaking of sweet things and Sanskrit, the word candy has its roots in Sanskrit खण्ड (khanda) meaning candied sugar.

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May 4th, 2017

Holborn is a station on the London Underground. Opened in 1906, it is in the centre of the city, near the British Museum. Holborn also has an interesting connection to particle physics. In 1930 Wolfgang Pauli postulated the existence of a massless (almost), chargeless, weakly-interacting particle called a 'neutrino'. This set off a flurry of attempts to discover the particle. Yet the neutrino interacted so rarely that most detectors were overwhelmed with interference from the barrage of strongly-interacting particles. So in 1943 British physicist Maurice Nahmias was granted permission to set up a particle detector in Holborn station, about 100 ft underground. It was his hope that deep underground he would be shielded from unwanted particles. Although he failed to detect any neutrinos, he did demonstrate that indeed neutrino detectors work better underground, and other scientists began following his example. Holborn has continued to be used over the years for scientific experiments that require a deep location. As for the elusive neutrino, one was finally detected in 1956, also underground. The discovery was rewarded in 1995 with a Nobel Prize.

Bonus:

Perhaps Nahmias would have had better luck had he chosen a deeper station. Amersham Station is the best he could have done, at 249 ft underground.

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May 3rd, 2017

Many cultures have interesting rules about how money should be presented as a gift. In the Jewish faith, money given at a Bar Mitzvah or Bat Mitzvah should come as multiples of 18. In India gift money is presented in ornate envelope called a शगुन लिफाफा (shagun lifafa, meaning 'presage envelope'). Amounts should have 1 as their last non-zero digit (51, 61, 210, 1910, etc.). The Chinese give gifts of money in iconic red envelopes called 紅包 (hongbao, literally 'red envelope'). They also have perhaps the most complicated rules for the amount. Even numbers are preferred for happy occasions, but the digit 4 should never appear in the amount, and 9 is allowed. Odd numbers are the norm at sad occasions like a funeral. All this to say, be careful to learn about the culture first before deciding the amount!

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May 2nd, 2017

Along with the Christian Cross and the Jewish Star of David, the Star and Crescent is the iconic symbol of Islam. It adorns the face of 12 national flags (sometimes slightly modified), all of which belong to predominantly Muslim countries. Of the three religious symbols, the Cross and Star of David have been used since antiquity, while the Star and Crescent was only recently associated with Islam. The Star and Crescent dates back millenniums, possibly even to Ancient Egypt. Over the centuries it has been reappropriated numerous times, eventually forming the flag of the Ottoman Empire in 1793. After the devolution of the Ottoman Empire, many of the successor states kept the iconography, most notably Turkey, whose flag is nearly identical. As many of these new nations practiced Islam, the association began to solidify. Libya bolstered this by pointing out that the moon could represent the Islamic lunar calendar, and that the moon and star pair is reminiscent of the Hegira (Mohammed's journey from Mecca to Medina). By the late 20th century the symbol and the faith had become synonymous, much to the chagrin of many Islamic scholars. If you choose to side with said scholars, the next best choice for a distinctly Islamic symbol is probably the stylized name of Allah: اَللّهٌ, as can be found on the flags of Saudi Arabia, Iran, Afghanistan, and Iraq.

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May 1st, 2017

The hugely popular travel guide series 'Lonely Planet' was started in 1972 by two Australians after they backpacked from Europe to Australia. They arrived with virtually no money left, and began working on a rough guide called 'Across Asia on the Cheap'. Lonely Planet would go on to revolutionise travel, giving individuals the confidence to finally step out of their home countries. The books were named after an often misheard lyric in the Joe Cocker song 'Space Cowboy' (the actual lyric is 'lovely planet'). A misheard phrase that leads to an alternate interpretation is called a mondegreen, and they have been an aspect of popular music - sometimes intentionally, sometimes by accident - as far back as popular music has existed. In fact, the word mondegreen itself is the result of a mondegreen: writer Syliva Wright coined the term after mishearing the lyrics 'and laid him on the green' as 'and Lady Mondegreen'.

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April 30th, 2017

Although they initially denied it, the band Rammstein took their name from the 1988 Ramstein Air Show Disaster, in which 70 people were killed. Apparently the extra 'm' was a mishap.

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April 29th, 2017

German has three tenses: Female, Male, and Neuter. It would make sense that the word for girl, mädchen, would be female, but in fact it is neuter. The word derives from an archaic word for girl, magd, which was indeed female. To this the diminutive 'chen' was added - a suffix that makes a word cute, similar to the suffix 'y' in English or 'ette' in French. However, in German, making a word diminutive changes it to neuter. The original word 'magd' was eventually forgotten, and the neuter alternative mädchen is now standard.

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April 28th, 2017

A landlocked country bordered only by other landlocked countries is called doubly landlocked. Only two countries are doubly landlocked. The first is Liechtenstein, which borders Switzerland and Austria, both of which are also landlocked. The other such country is Uzbekistan, which borders five other landlocked countries: Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan. Though to the west Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan also border the massive Caspian Sea, so are they really landlocked? Deciding whether the Caspian is a 'true sea', or the world's largest lake, is where the ambiguity lies. A sea is sometimes defined as a body of salt water, in which case the Caspian does fit the bill. Yet a lake is disconnected from the world's oceans, which the Caspian is also...sort of. In 1952 the Volga-Don Canal was opened, which for the first time ever meant it was possible for a boat to reach the ocean from the Caspian through a complex route. Explicitly, as of 1952 a boat could go: Caspian, Volga River, Volga-Don Canal, Don River, Sea of Azov, Kerch Strait, Black Sea, Bosphorus Strait, Sea of Marmara, Dardanelles Strait, Aegean Sea, Mediterranean Sea, Strait of Gibraltar, and finally the Atlantic Ocean. So if you want to ask whether or not Uzbekistan is truly doubly landlocked, you are better off asking if digging a canal to a lake turns it into a sea.

Bonus:
कबड्डी (Kabaddi) is a sport popular in South Asia in which a team send a player to try and touch as many of the other team's players as possible and return back to his side of the court on a single breath.

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