#109 What is graphene and why is it so important?
I learned this today. Graphene is a one-atom-thick layer of carbon atoms arranged in a hexagonal lattice. It is incredibly thin and […]
#108 Why is the official kilogram in France no longer used?
I learned this today. The International Prototype of the Kilogram, kept in Paris, is not accurate enough to be the standard for […]
#107 Did Adolf Hitler have any brothers or sisters?
I learned this today. Adolf Hitler had three brothers, two sisters, one half-brother, and one half-sister. Because of the things he did, […]
#106 What does the Milky Way Galaxy orbit?
I learned this today. The Milky Way Galaxy orbits the barycenter of the Local Group. The barycenter is the center of mass […]
#105 Why do we use the word Vikings?
I learned this today. Vikings is the name given to the seafaring people from Scandinavia who raided through Europe from the late […]
#104 How do cats retract their claws and why can’t other animals?
I learned this today. Cats don’t so much retract their claws as lift them off the ground using tendons. Their claws are […]
#103 Why do we use those measurements for shoe sizes?
I learned this today. Shoe sizes in America and the UK are measured in barleycorns. Nobody knows when people first started wearing […]
#102 Why do we use miles as a unit of measurement
I learned this today. The mile we use today originated with the Roman mile which was one thousand paces. The word “mile” […]
#101 Why can’t light escape from a black hole?
I learned this today. Light can’t escape from a black hole because of the curvature of space caused by gravity. In physics, […]
#100 Who came up with the phrase “flight or fight”?
I learned this today. Flight or fight, the stress response, was first described by Walter Bradford Cannon in 1915. In 1915, Cannon […]