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The shortest term for a U.S. president was only one month.

William Henry Harrison
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Author Michael Nordine
February 21, 2024

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William Henry Harrison didn’t accomplish much during his time in the White House, but there’s a good reason for that: He died after just one month in office. The ninth president of the United States caught a cold after getting stuck in a rainstorm on March 24, 1841, just 20 days after his inauguration, and made the fateful decision not to change his wet clothes upon returning to the White House. He developed a “severe chill” the next day, complained of “fatigue and mental anxiety,” and underwent bloodletting before being diagnosed with pneumonia on March 29. His illness was kept from the public, which began to worry — and speculate — about the newly elected commander in chief.

Harrison’s condition worsened, and on April 3 he spoke his last words, directed at Vice President John Tyler: “Sir, I wish you to understand the true principles of the government. I wish them carried out. I ask nothing more.” He succumbed to the illness at 12:30 in the morning on April 4, the first president to die in office, setting off a brief constitutional crisis, as presidential succession had yet to be clearly defined. Harrison’s wife, Anna, who was still in Ohio, never moved into the White House. Tyler was sworn into office two days later once the confusion was resolved, earning the unfortunate nickname of “His Accidency.”

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John Tyler had a living grandson until 2025.

Tyler, born in 1790, had 15 children, including a son named Lyon Gardiner Tyler in 1853, when the former POTUS was 63. (His second wife, whom he married in 1844, while president, was 30 years his junior.) Lyon then had three sons of his own in his 70s (also with a younger second wife), one of whom — Harrison Ruffin Tyler, born in 1928 — lived to the age of 96. He passed away in May 2025.

A little-known Mongol general conquered 32 nations.

Mongol General Subutai
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Author Michael Nordine
July 7, 2025

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The Mongol Empire was the largest contiguous land empire in human history. It encompassed 9 million square miles at its peak, with some estimates placing its population as high as 100 million people — about 25% of the world at the time. And while Genghis Khan tends to receive most of the credit for that, he didn’t do it alone. There was also Subutai, a Mongol general who conquered 32 nations. Indeed, many sources claim Subutai conquered more land than anyone else in history, including such famed generals as Alexander the Great, Napoleon Bonaparte, and Julius Caesar. 

Believed to have been born in 1175, Subutai was notable for being a commoner with no blood relation to Genghis Khan (birth name Temujin), whose army he joined at the age of 14. “Like the felt blanket that protects your tent from the wind,” he reportedly said during his oath of allegiance, “I will gather great armies to shelter your tent.”

Subutai quickly rose through the ranks and was promoted to general in 1204. In the following decades, he led successful campaigns against the Khwarazmian Empire, Turks, Chinese, Russians, Circassians, Cumans, Alans, and several other groups that no longer exist — in part due to his military prowess. He won a total of 65 battles as part of 20 different wars, helping expand Mongol territory into parts of present-day China, Russia, Georgia, Poland, and Hungary. One such victory was the legendary Great Raid of 1220-1223, during which Mongol forces traveled 5,500 miles through modern-day Iran, Azerbaijan, Georgia, the Caucasuses, and around the Caspian Sea, before returning to Iran, fighting and conquering along the way. Subutai retired in 1247, at which point he was in his early 70s, and he died the following year.

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One of Genghis Khan’s most trusted generals nearly killed him in battle.

Much of Genghis Khan’s success was predicated on his belief in meritocracy, promoting people to positions of great power solely because they’d earned it. That was true of Subutai, and it was also true of one of his other “dogs of war,” Jebe, whom the khan (ruler) first met on the battlefield. Born to the Besud clan under the name Zurgudai, he was part of the Taichuud tribe that went against the Mongols during a battle in 1201 — a conflict that saw him injure Genghis’ horse, and possibly the khan himself, with an arrow. The Mongols won the battle, and their leader asked the prisoners they'd captured who was responsible for the arrow that killed his horse. Zurgudai admitted to it, and the khan was so impressed that he took him on as an officer and nicknamed him Jebe, which means “arrow.”

Tennis balls changed from white to yellow to be easier to see on TV.

Live tennis broadcast
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Author Nicole Villeneuve
February 21, 2024

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By the early 1970s, many television networks had made the transition from broadcasting in black and white to color, and an increasing number of households were upgrading their TV sets to take advantage. The new technology offered a more immersive and entertaining experience; it also, in one case, presented an opportunity for innovation in sports. In 1972, neon-yellow tennis balls as we know them today were introduced to the sport in order to be more visible on color TV sets. The vibrant hue was selected after a study conducted by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) found that the bright shade of yellow — known officially as “optic yellow” — made it easier for viewers at home to follow the action on their screens. 

Historically, tennis balls had been either white or black (depending on the color of the courts), but when broadcast in color, white balls were more difficult to track. Even after the introduction of yellow balls, however, white balls were still allowed, and Wimbledon, the oldest tennis tournament in the world, didn’t make the switch. This was despite the fact that the prestigious sporting event had been broadcast in color since 1967, when legendary BBC broadcaster David Attenborough oversaw the company’s switch from black and white. It took another 14 years until the tournament got with the times, and in 1986, Wimbledon finally adopted optic yellow tennis balls.

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Golf was the first sport played on the moon.

In 1971, two years after Neil Armstrong became the first person to step onto the surface of the moon, astronaut Alan Shepard took a different leap for mankind. During the Apollo 14 mission, he brought along the head of a 6-iron golf club. He attached it to the handle of a collapsible lunar excavation tool, and used the makeshift golf club to hit two golf balls — making golf the first sport played on the moon. At the time, Shepard claimed his second ball traveled for “miles and miles and miles,” but recently remastered images show that it traveled about 40 yards, and the first ball traveled roughly 24 yards. Astronaut Edgar Mitchell also got in on the sporting fun, using a pole from a solar wind experiment as a javelin. His throw landed near Shepard’s first golf ball.

People used to think birds transformed into different species in winter.

Eurasian Blackcap bird
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Author Sarah Anne Lloyd
July 10, 2025

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It took a long time for scientists to fully wrap their heads around bird migration, and ancient scholars had some wild ideas about what happened to birds in the winter. The Greek philosopher Aristotle, who was among the first to scientifically study bird migration, came up with a few theories, including one that seems especially wacky today: He suggested that some birds transformed into entirely different bird species with the season.

Aristotle carefully observed the natural world before drawing any conclusions, so the idea, while woefully misguided, wasn’t completely out of left field. Greece is a summer home to some birds and a winter home to others, so while some departed to Africa for the warmer climate at the start of winter, others arrived from Northern Europe. The philosopher noted two pairings of birds that followed this pattern: Robins arrived in Greece right around the time that redstarts, another red-breasted songbird, departed. Similarly, garden warblers spend their winters in Africa, while Eurasian blackcaps, their close relative, seek warmth in the Mediterranean. But after seeing the two birds replace one another each year, he concluded that they changed bodies, not locations. He even claimed to have seen a bird mid-transition, although modern experts believe he likely saw a bird that was molting.

Aristotle’s logic seemed to check out to the general public, and the view that birds change species was commonly held for centuries. To his credit, Aristotle correctly figured that some birds, such as cranes, do simply fly somewhere else during the colder months.

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Some scholars thought swallows hibernated underwater.

Aristotle had another theory for some birds’ wintertime whereabouts: hibernation. He suggested some swallows did migrate short distances, but others hid in the hollows of trees. This idea didn’t take hold right away, but after Aristotle’s work was translated in the mid-13th century, some naturalists and academics ran with it — and built on it. German philosopher Albertus Magnus wrote in 1258 CE that swallows also may stop breathing during hibernation. Two centuries later, Swedish archbishop and influential writer Olaus Magnus got especially creative: In autumn, he wrote, swallows gather by lakes and rivers, dive in headfirst, and immerse themselves in mud at the bottom until springtime. This theory was taken seriously enough that 18th-century surgeon John Hunter even tested it by confining 20 swallows at the end of autumn and providing them with an artificial pond.

Iceland and Britain engaged in a series of conflicts known as the Cod Wars.

British fishing operation
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Author Michael Nordine
February 14, 2024

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Iceland currently ranks as the most peaceful country in the world, but its history isn’t entirely free of strife. Beginning in the 1950s, the Nordic country engaged in a series of conflicts with the U.K., known as the Cod Wars. The mostly bloodless back-and-forth involved fishing rights in the North Atlantic, as British ships had been drifting ever closer to Iceland for centuries in search of their oceanic quarry — an encroachment the smaller nation reluctantly tolerated for a time. That ended when Iceland expanded its exclusive economic zone (EEZ) in 1958, forcing the United Kingdom’s trawlers to stay out of Icelandic waters.

Rather than comply, Britain began having warships escort its trawlers. While most of the confrontations that followed amounted to little more than saber-rattling — vessels ramming one another, warning shots being fired into the crisp, cold air — what the U.K. called “the first casualty of the cod war” occurred in 1975 when a fisherman from Grimsby, England, was injured by a cable that an Icelandic trawler severed. It was actually the second casualty, however, as an Icelandic engineer was killed in 1973. It was also the last: The resulting diplomatic talks ended with the U.K. accepting Iceland’s 200-mile EEZ, bringing the decades-long conflict to an end.

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There’s an app in Iceland that prevents people from dating their relatives.

With a population of around just 376,000, nearly 60% of which is clustered in or near the capital city of Reykjavík, Iceland is not a large country. It’s also a historically homogenous one, which is why Sad Engineers Studios created the Íslendinga-App to prevent people from accidentally dating distant relatives. Drawing on a database with more than 1,200 years of genealogical information, it allows users to bump their phones and see if they might be (kissing) cousins — a feature known as “Sifjaspellsspillir,” or “Incest Spoiler.” The app’s slogan, fittingly enough, is “Bump the app before you bump in bed.”

The “Guinness Book of Records” was created to settle arguments in pubs.

Guinness Book of Records
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Author Bennett Kleinman
June 30, 2025

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In 1954, Hugh Beaver, the managing director of the Guinness Brewery, began research on a new book of records meant to help settle pub arguments. The idea stemmed from a bird hunting expedition Beaver took in 1951, during which he and other guests debated about the fastest game bird. Unable to find an answer in any extant reference work, Beaver eventually decided to create his own record book to answer such questions. He hired researchers Norris and Ross McWhirter to work at his new company, Guinness Superlatives, which began operations on November 30, 1954. The McWhirter brothers (the twin sons of a newspaper editor) worked tirelessly to research various facts before finally putting pen to paper, and after more than three months of 90-hour workweeks, the record book was ready for publication.

The first issue of the Guinness Book of Records (now named Guinness World Records) was published on August 27, 1955. Initially, the book was intended as promotional material for the Guinness Brewery, so 1,000 copies — which were laminated to protect against potential beer spillage — were distributed to local British pubs. However, the book proved to be so popular that Beaver changed his tack and began selling it to the public. An additional 50,000 copies were printed, and by Christmas of 1955, the Guinness Book of Records achieved bestseller status in the United Kingdom. The company released the first U.S. edition in September the following year, and by 1964, the book had sold more than a million copies worldwide.

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The Guinness Brewery signed a 9,000-year lease in 1759.

The Guinness Brewery has been located in Dublin, Ireland, since 1759, and is likely to remain there for many more years. That’s because on December 31, 1759, founder Arthur Guinness signed a 9,000-year lease to convert a brewery at St. James’s Gate in Dublin into a 4-acre brewery of his very own. At the time, lengthy leases were common in Europe, ensuring businesses could be run by families for several generations. Guinness ponied up a down payment of £100 and agreed to pay an annual rent of £45 each year. By the 1770s, Guinness had perfected brewing the stout beer that the company is now known for, and the brewery ceased production on less popular ales by 1799. In the centuries that followed, the brewery expanded to cover 50 acres of land, thus nullifying the original lease — which can be seen on display at the Guinness factory today.

Blackbeard’s ship sunk off the coast of North Carolina.

Illustration of Blackbeard
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Author Timothy Ott
June 26, 2025

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Perhaps the most famous of the characters who defined the golden age of piracy, Blackbeard (born under the name Edward Teach or possibly Thatch) earned his moniker for the prominent coal-black bush that overtook his jawline and neck. Prone to braiding this growth into pigtails, tied with colorful ribbons, he also tucked lighted fuses under the brim of his hat, producing a supernatural haze of smoke to accompany his fierce gaze. 

Unsurprisingly, Blackbeard struck terror into the hearts of sailors as he guided the crew of the Queen Anne’s Revenge through the Caribbean for a brief period of the early 18th century, plundering the valuables and useful crew members of other vessels as he pleased. The fearsome captain even managed to blockade the port of Charleston, South Carolina, in May 1718 to obtain a desired chest of medicine. But for all his mastery of the high seas, the acclaimed pirate wasn’t immune to navigational blunder: Shortly after the blockade, the Queen Anne’s Revenge was grounded on a sandbar in what is now the Beaufort Inlet off the coast of North Carolina, forcing the captain and his men to abandon ship before it was completely swallowed up by the waves.

Or perhaps the ship was wrecked on purpose? A fellow captain who traveled with Blackbeard indicated as much, suggesting the pirate wanted to break up a company that had swollen to more than 300 men, and later examinations revealed the Queen Anne’s Revenge was in poor shape by the time it was abandoned. At any rate, Blackbeard himself didn’t survive for much longer, as he was killed in battle in November 1718. Yet his fame endured, thanks in part to the rollicking adventures featured in the 1952 movie Blackbeard the Pirate. A half-century later, Blackbeard enjoyed a revival with the discovery of the Queen Anne’s Revenge wreckage in its watery grave, proving that certain swashbuckling legends are simply too compelling to wash away.

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Many pirate stereotypes are myths.

Recent research has suggested that Blackbeard's menacing demeanor may have been an act, and the captain was actually a well-bred young man. It's yet another revelation that pokes holes in the widespread — if generally understood to be exaggerated — image of pirate behavior.  For example, pirates rarely actually buried their treasure, a concept popularized by Robert Louis Stevenson's 1883 novel Treasure Island, as they were far more likely to spend the spoils of plundering on rum and gambling at the nearest port. They also never made people "walk the plank," another Treasure Island fantasy, with unwanted captives either simply tossed overboard or marooned on a deserted island. And it's unlikely these individuals walked around growling, "Arrr, matey"; that touch can be credited to actor Robert Newton, who portrayed Blackbeard and Treasure Island's Long John Silver on the big and small screens in the 1950s. But not all that has survived from buccaneer lore is fiction: The display of a skull-and-crossbones flag, aka the Jolly Roger, was indeed a verified component of 18th-century pirate vessels, although there were multiple variations of this ominous design.

In the Victorian era, bridesmaids often wore white.

Victorian-era wedding party
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Author Sarah Anne Lloyd
June 26, 2025

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There are few wedding guest gaffes more serious than wearing white. In Western culture, that color is traditionally reserved for the bride, so even the plainest white dress can be considered upstaging. And yet, in England’s Victorian era, when etiquette was of the utmost importance, bridesmaids often wore white, thanks to the influence of the queen herself.

Queen Victoria is often credited with popularizing the white wedding dress in the Western world, after wearing one for her 1840 nuptials when she married Prince Albert. But it wasn’t just Victoria who wore white — her bridesmaids did too, in dresses the monarch helped design.

That said, the queen didn’t invent the idea of the white gown for brides: White, especially with silver, was a popular color choice among those wealthy enough to buy an impractical dress for the occasion. But Victoria’s wedding fashion, combined with the burgeoning Industrial Revolution lowering the price of many garments, the advent of photography, and the emergence of women’s magazines, made both white gowns and white bridesmaids dresses popular across class lines. In the following decades, bridesmaids often dressed in a less-extravagant version of the bride’s outfit, complete with a (shorter) veil. 

Over time, new, vibrant dyes came on the market at prices that non-wealthy people could afford, and brides were eager to add these new hues to their wedding party. By the 1940s, white was traditionally reserved for the bride, and most bridesmaids were wearing other colors.

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White wedding dresses used to represent wealth, not purity.

Even before the trend went mainstream, white and silver dresses were a common choice among wealthy brides in the 18th century, but the colors had nothing to do with purity and everything to do with extravagance. Light-colored dresses were costly and impossible to keep clean, so wearing one signaled money and status. As white dresses became affordable to more brides, the association with purity was retroactively applied by women’s magazines. In 1849, an article in Godey’s Lady’s Book claimed that white dresses were “an emblem of the purity and innocence of girlhood, and the unsullied heart she now yields to the chosen one.”

Joan of Arc inspired the bob haircut.

Joan of Arc, 1429
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Author Rachel Gresh
June 30, 2025

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A 15th-century teenage war heroine may be an unlikely fashion muse, yet the French martyr Joan of Arc inspired the bob haircut that was trendy throughout the 20th century. Joan first decided to crop her hair and don men’s clothing to hide from danger during a journey to see Charles VII, the dauphin of France, believing she had received divine guidance that would help save France during the Hundred Years’ War against England. At just age 17, she helped lead her country to victory at the Siege of Orléans in 1429, for which she became famous. She is often depicted in knight’s armor with a cropped, pageboy-style hairdo in scenes from the battle. 

The French heroine returned to the spotlight when the Catholic Church canonized her as St. Joan of Arc in the early 20th century. Influenced by Joan’s popularity, renowned Paris hairdresser Antoni Cierplikowski cut the first “bob” hairdo in 1909, citing Joan as his inspiration. The cut transformed the idea of cropped hair for women, making it a fashionable look for glamorous Hollywood stars — albeit controversial, especially at first. Long hair had long been seen as a symbol of femininity, and it was considered rebellious and even scandalous to expose the nape of the neck. Famous ballroom dancer Irene Castle was among the first to adopt the look, cropping her tresses in 1915. Actress Louise “Lulu” Brooks further popularized the style in the 1929 silent film Pandora’s Box, which made the “Lulu bob” world famous. Jazz Age “flappers” also adopted the new ’do, emphasizing their break from societal norms. Bobs continued their reign throughout the 20th century, as seen on some of the most influential women of the era, from actresses Elizabeth Taylor and Audrey Hepburn to First Lady Jackie Kennedy.

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Barbers doubled as surgeons in medieval Europe.

Cutting hair and performing surgery were considered similar crafts during the Middle Ages, both requiring a steady hand with a blade. In 1540, King Henry VIII of England even issued a decree ordering the Company of the Barbers and the Fellowship of Surgeons to form one unified trade guild, the Company of Barber-Surgeons, considered masters in medicine and grooming. Barbers began assisting with medical procedures that required blades, especially bloodletting, after the 14th-century bubonic plague dramatically decreased the number of qualified surgeons throughout Europe. Eventually, barber-surgeons performed dental extractions, minor surgeries, and even amputations. The profession was especially common in France, where Ambroise Paré — often regarded as the father of modern surgery — began his career as a barber-surgeon.

Richard Nixon helped fund his first political campaign by playing poker.

Nixon standing behind mic
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Author Bennett Kleinman
June 30, 2025

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Before he was president, Richard Nixon was such a prolific poker player that he amassed enough winnings to help fund his very first political campaign. In January 1944, Nixon was stationed in the South Pacific while serving in the U.S. Navy, and it was during this time that he became something of a card shark, though it’s rumored he had no idea how to even play poker upon his arrival at the base. Nixon quickly took an interest in learning the game and spent hours studying strategy before putting his money at risk. His hard work proved fruitful, and the future president raked in around $40 to $50 each night (roughly $700 to $876 today). One fellow serviceman noted that he once saw Nixon “bluff a lieutenant commander out of $1,500 with a pair of deuces.” 

Nixon continued to win big before returning stateside in July. Upon arriving home, he claimed to have won $8,000 (around $140,000 today) from his various poker exploits, though some estimates put the winnings closer to $6,800. Either way, the number was quite substantial. In 1946, Nixon decided to enter the world of politics and run for Congress in California’s 12th District. A political newcomer, he turned to his poker savings as a way to jump-start his campaign, using the winnings to fund approximately 20% of its total costs. This choice paid off, as Nixon easily coasted to victory over incumbent Jerry Voorhis, marking the beginning of his political climb.

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FDR and Nixon are the only people to appear on a major presidential ticket five times.

In the history of U.S. presidential elections, two candidates have appeared on a national major party ticket on five separate occasions: Franklin D. Roosevelt and Richard Nixon. FDR first ran on the Democratic ticket in 1920 as the vice presidential candidate, though he and presidential nominee James M. Cox ultimately came up short. Twelve years later, Roosevelt was nominated as the Democratic presidential candidate, and went on to win his first of four consecutive elections — the most of any U.S. president. Nixon, for his part, appeared on his first national ticket as a Republican in 1952, serving as the vice presidential nominee alongside Dwight D. Eisenhower. He successfully won two terms as vice president before unsuccessfully running for president against John F. Kennedy in 1960. He was nominated for president again in 1968, winning that election as well as his reelection campaign in 1972.

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