I learned this today. Zippers weren’t called zippers until about 30 years after they had been invented and they got their name from a boot. A number of different people claim to have invented the zipper, but Elias Howe Jr. technically holds the patent for what can be called the closest thing to an early […]
#62 Why are zippers called zippers? Read More »
I learned this today. We say “the press” to refer to the media because the first newspapers were made on a movable type printing press. Johannes Gutenberg invented the movable-type printing press somewhere between 1440 and 1450. By 1450, it was in operation. Before his invention, printing was done using wooden blocks. The page to
#59 Why do we say “the press” to refer to journalists and newspapers? Read More »
I learned this today. Black Friday started in the 1950s when police in Philadelphia had to deal with the crowds and mayhem that came after Thanksgiving. Thousands of people came into the city for the Army-Navy football game that was held on the first Saturday after Thanksgiving every year. These days, Black Friday refers to
#55 Where does Black Friday originate? Read More »
I learned this today. The first ever Nobel Peace Prize was given to Henry Dunant in 1901. He was the man who founded the Red Cross. The Nobel Prize was created through the will of Alfred Nobel. He was a chemist, engineer, and inventor. He invented 355 things during his lifetime. The most famous thing
#52 Who won the first Nobel Peace Prize? Read More »
I learned this today. The symbol of the Red Cross is the Swiss flag reversed. The Red Cross was started by a Swiss businessman called Henry Dunant. He was born in 1828 and died in 1910. Dunant had started a business that operated in French-occupied Algeria, but the local government was not very helpful. Dunant
#51 Where did the symbol for the Red Cross come from? Read More »
I learned this today. Butlers started out as the person who was in charge of the alcoholic drinks for a household. The word “butler” came into English from the Anglo-Norman word “buteler”, which came from the Old Norman “butelier”. This in turn came from the French “botellier”. The French word came from the medieval Latin
#49 Why are butlers called butlers? Read More »
I learned this today. Earl Grey tea is supposed to have been named after Charles Grey, 2nd Earl Grey, prime minister of Britain from 1830 to 1834, but it is more likely that this story was invented for advertising purposes and the tea is actually named after William Grey & Co. tea merchant. Earl Grey
#48 Why is Earl Grey tea called Earl Grey? Read More »
I learned this today. The teabag was a staggering invention in the world of tea drinking, but it was originally called the “tea leaf holder” and was invented to cut down on waste. Tea drinking began in China in about 2737 BC (according to legend). Teapots have been found in Chinese sites dating back to
#46 Why was the teabag invented? Read More »
I learned this today. The most famous building in Rome is probably the Colosseum, but it wasn’t called the Colosseum until about 600 years after it was built. The Colosseum was built between 69 and 80 AD. It was ordered by Emperor Vespasian. It was built on land that Emperor Nero had confiscated from the
#42 Why is the Colosseum called the “Colosseum”? Read More »
I learned this today. The construction of the Berlin Wall began on the night of Sunday 13th August. A day that is called Barbed Wire Sunday. At the end of World War 2, the defeated Germany was divided up among the allied powers: America, Britain, France, and Russia. Each power occupied a quarter of the
#38 Why was the Berlin Wall first built? Read More »
