Today in 1957, Sputnik because the world’s first artificial satellite. This changed the world around us in countless ways, including one that doesn’t get a lot of attention: it gave the English language a brand new word.
Yes, today is a day in the month of May, but that's not where the international distress call "Mayday" comes from. We'll fill you in on the actual backstory.
Today in 1832, the birthday of Charles Boycott, whose name has been used for over a century anytime people decide to deliberately take their business away from a group or a company.
Today is World Hello Day, so we explain how and when English speakers started using the word "hello" to say hello.
Today in 1836, Arkansas became the 25th state in the Union. It’s one of just a handful of states whose names sound different than they’re spelled. And if you’re wondering why it’s pronounced Arkan-saw instead of Ar-kansas, well, that’s what we’re here to explain.
It's the first Wednesday of the new year. How come many of us don’t pronounce it “WED-ns-day”?
Today in 1919, one of the strangest moments in the history of baseball: a pitcher won a game in which he was struck by lightning!
This daily podcast is like a study group for trivia players. So today we're going to give you some trivia about the word trivia! Plus: today in 2010, the opening of the Burj Khalifa, a building so tall that at the top you can see the sun even when it’s dark at the bottom.
A new website called the Historical Dictionary of Science Fiction is taking us back through the words that have made sci-fi what it is and showing how much this genre has shaped popular culture. Plus: meet a planet that's barely orbiting a brown dwarf, some 450 light years from earth, a spot in the actual universe that seems more like science fiction.
It's National Waitstaff Day, and whether or not you're back to dining out, it's a good time to figure out a little of where restaurants come from. (It's complicated.)
