‘Stop What You’re Doing and Google Why Chainsaws Were Invented’
A viral Facebook post advised users to — if only for a moment — ponder why chainsaws were actually created.
today i learned
‘Picasso Died in 1973, Surprising the Internet Every Year’
Tens of thousands of social media users seemed surprised that prolific artist Pablo Picasso was notable in a relatively modern era of art history.
Fresh Snow Absorbs Sound
A meme claims “fresh snow absorbs sound,” which is true — with some minor caveats.
‘Students Today Depend on Paper Too Much, Don’t Know How to Write on a Slate’ 1815 Quote
A purported lament from a “principal’s publication” in 1815 addressed students’ over-reliance on paper and their inability to manage writing on slates without getting chalk dust everywhere.
Did an Irish Suffragist Follow Winston Churchill for a Week Ringing a Bell Whenever He Tried to Speak?
A popular history post claims that Mary Maloney tailed the British statesman and prevented him from being heard in the early 1900s.
Is Lucy Liu an Acclaimed Artist Known for Her Lesbian Paintings Under the Pseudonym Yu Ling?
A wildly popular social media post wove a narrative about the actor and her secret life as an accomplished painter of homoerotic art.
Does McKamey Manor Award $20,000 to Successful ‘Extreme Haunted/Horror House’ Attendees?
Numerous news organizations repeated unverified claims about a grand prize at a “haunted house” that its critics refer to as nothing more than a torture facility.
Zinaida, Get Your Gun
On Facebook and Imgur, users shared a World War II-era story of a brave Russian girl named Zinaida Portnova.
Did Rolex Sales Records Help Solve a Murder?
A tale about the high-end watchmakers, their “meticulous records,” and the unlikely conclusion to a murder investigation proved popular on Reddit and Imgur.
Did ‘Upper Case’ and ‘Lower Case’ Originally Refer to Where Printers Kept Their Letters?
Twitter commentary about technology across generations hinted at little-known etymological origins for the terms.
