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The London Underground, affectionately known as “The Tube,” is much more than a transit system. It’s an iconic symbol of London and a marvel of engineering history, weaving through the city and its surrounding counties like veins of a bustling metropolis. First introduced as the Metropolitan Railway in 1863, the Underground was the world’s first

Transatlantic voyages weren’t just about getting from point A to point B—they were rich with traditions, rituals, and customs, many of which reflected the anxieties, superstitions, and camaraderie of life at sea. Whether designed to ward off bad luck, celebrate milestones, or bring passengers together, these rituals paint a vivid picture of what life was

So, what was going on in the world a century ago, in 1925? We’ve scoured the archives to find ten of the most compelling events of that year that made the headlines, and there are some humdingers. The year saw America’s deadliest tornado, the invention of television, Italy’s emergence as a fascist dictatorship, and a

When it comes to a great piece of literature, what’s in a title? Actually, quite a lot: whether as straightforward as Dracula, as cryptic as Lord of the Flies, or as devastating as The Waste Land, the title of a literary work functions as our entry point into it. But so many great literary works

“You keep using that word,” Inigo Montoya infamously said in The Princess Bride so many years ago, “but I do not think it means what you think it means.” We’ve all been there. Using a word in a way that isn’t technically correct—or, even worse, it’s just straight-up wrong. It can be embarrassing, of course.

Traversing the deep blue sea is no longer a recent venture for mankind since curiosity for what lies below dates back many years. Submersible boat designs evolved much over time. By 1776, the world’s first combat submarine, designed by David Bushnell, was put to task to break the British blockade of Boston Harbor, a challenge

Since the early days of filmmaking, it seems every generation has certain movies that strongly reflect whatever sets them apart from their parents and grandparents. Whether it be fashion, social behavior, attitude toward life, or simply a refusal to conform in general, motion pictures that successfully capture what makes a generation unique often become nostalgic

Black holes are bizarre yet fascinating objects. Regions of space and time are so dense and have such strong gravitational attraction that they consume anything and everything that might wander too close. Not even light can escape their pull, making it impossible to see directly. Instead, scientists scour the cosmos for a lack of photons—a

Many good things come with fame, but it is not without its downsides. Many people lose the respect that they would normally have for another person’s privacy, personal space, and possessions if that person is a celebrity. When famous people’s belongings fall into the hands of others by theft or accident, the chances of finding

Fossils serve as time capsules, offering glimpses into the ancient past and helping scientists reconstruct the evolutionary story of life on Earth. Most fossils fit neatly into our understanding of biology and history, but every so often, a discovery emerges that doesn’t align with established theories. These anomalies spark debate, challenge long-held beliefs, and sometimes

Humanity has always had a thing for superstitions—those quirky, often nonsensical beliefs that spice up our lives with a touch of paranoia. They have us knocking on wood when we tempt fate, giving black cats the side-eye, and detouring around ladders like they’re crime scenes. Harmless, right? Not always. While most superstitions are charming little

The 1920s were a very strange time for a lot of different reasons. For one, it was a free-wheeling era that saw people act wild and crazy, far beyond what had come about in the previous few decades. There were flapper girls, wild dancing parties, and all kinds of people getting rich during an economic

Books are an excellent source of inspiration for filmmakers. If they take a literary classic and adapt it to the screen, they practically guarantee the project’s success. After all, the story already works on the page, so all the screenwriters have to do is translate it. Doing so will put the movie, TV show, or

Zombies aren’t just figments of horror movies and video games—they’re inspired by very real and very horrifying diseases. The world is teeming with ways to turn you (or something else) into the walking undead. Whether it’s a syndrome that convinces you you’re already dead or a virus that rewires you to bite your neighbors, this

Certain events have very clearly defined American history. The Battle of Gettysburg, the bombing of Pearl Harbor, the assassination of public figures like Martin Luther King Jr. and John F. Kennedy—certainly, the list goes on from there. But just as much, there have been quite a few incredibly important events that have defined American history,

Typically, when we think of someone who has chosen to enter the culinary world as either a cook or a chef, we often think of people who have had a deep love of food from early on in life, those who have a refined pallet and find joy in creating meals that are just as

Alcohol and traffic are two opposite terms—two parallel lines that should never meet. A driver is not expected to have even a little alcohol while planning to drive; it is unsafe, dangerous, and downright immoral. An intoxicated driver poses a threat to the lives of others aside from himself. While drunk drivers have taken innocent

When a work enters the public domain, it’s like releasing an immortal animal into the wild after it has been caged for a hundred years. Now freed from copyright restrictions, the work can be studied, reinterpreted, and explored in ways that better reveal its true nature. Scholars, creators, and fans are granted new freedoms to

At the end of World War II in Europe in May 1945, there were plenty of Nazis who had cause to fear retribution from the Allies because of their appalling war crimes. But all too many of them avoided justice by fleeing to Latin America, in many cases helped to abscond by the rogue Catholic

Bodies found in abandoned houses raise questions of identity, manner, and cause of death, as well as the reasons that they came to be in the houses in the first place. Unfortunately, the answers to some of these questions are never likely to be known. Those that are determined frequently point to misfortune, drugs, and