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A 1961 "Atomic Garden" showing tomatoes that have been atomically energized.
science

Growing Mutant Peanuts With the Radioactive Gardening Society

In the 1960s, some experimental horticulturalists went nuclear.
Natalie Zarrelli June 8, 2017
Empty bottles of Vodka and Buckfast, lay outside a disused house in Kirkcaldy, Scotland.
food

How a Tonic Wine Brewed by Monks Became the Scourge of Scotland

Despite its pious origins, Buckfast has become associated with hooliganism.
Natasha Frost June 7, 2017
The first, almost complete, adult mandible discovered at Jebel Irhoud.
skulls

The Oldest Known Homo Sapiens Fossils Now Come From North Africa

New finds are rewriting the story of our species.
Sarah Laskow June 7, 2017
The Jail Café in Los Angeles, 1920.
restaurants

Old Hollywood's Best Theme Restaurants Specialized in Abductions and Dungeons

In 1920s L.A., a fun dinner meant getting locked up.
Michael Waters June 7, 2017
Reverend Bob Wilkes points the way.
maps

The Delightful English Tradition of Beating Parish Boundaries With Sticks

Or, why you may have seen 40 branch-wielding people in Oxford shouting "Mark, mark!"
Emily Cleaver June 6, 2017
The "Catawba Deerksin Map."
native americans

The Mysteries of a Rare, 18th-Century Native American Map

It may have been more about social and trade relationships than geography.
Sarah Laskow June 5, 2017
A stress ball, one of the many types of anxiety toys.
toys

Quit Worrying, Fidget Toys Have Been Around Forever

A spin through anxiety gadgets, from worry beads to Baoding balls.
Ali Jaffe June 5, 2017
Vendetta/Mousa and Attack/Summer swimming off the coast of West Iceland, with baby Tide between them.
science

Paging Through the World's Handy, Adorable Orca Catalogs

A who's who for the orca set.
Cara Giaimo June 2, 2017
An uncut sheet of cards from the Conjuring Arts' own line of playing cards.
libraries

Inside the Magic Library at the Conjuring Arts Research Center

Need to read up on a 17th-century card trick? Come here.
Luke Spencer June 2, 2017
An illustration of Gilles de Rais disposing of a woman's corpse.
medieval

The Modern Movement to Exonerate a Notorious Medieval Serial Killer

Gilles de Rais inspired the tale of Bluebeard. But was he really a murderer?
Sonya Vatomsky June 2, 2017
A later engraving of the Valley Forge encampment.
weapons

A Stash of 30 Hidden Bayonets Was Discovered in Valley Forge

“No one has ever found this many together.”
Sarah Laskow June 2, 2017
cryptozoology

In Search of the Elusive Pink-Headed Duck

After years of trying, one man thinks he will finally find a bird long thought to be extinct.
Sarah Laskow June 1, 2017
A photo of the Ringling Brothers and their mustache cups.
objects of intrigue

A Look Back at the Mustache Cups That Kept Tea-Drinkers' Whiskers Dry

Equipped with a small ledge, they kept gents' facial hair from getting dunked.
Natasha Frost May 31, 2017
A 1/64 violin.
miniatures

The World's Smallest Violin and the Tiny Musicians Who Play It

These mini musical instruments are very carefully crafted.
Samantha London May 31, 2017
Hell camp executives in training in Japan, wearing "ribbons of shame."
history

The Intense Corporate 'Hell Camps' of 1980s Japan

They involved night hikes, forced public singing, and "ribbons of shame."
Allan Richarz May 30, 2017
It looks innocent enough.
plants

Invasive Plants Can Transform a Forest, Even After They're Wiped Out

Their impact on ecosystems comes on fast and can be permanent.
Sarah Laskow May 30, 2017
A diver examines the timber Steve Libert believes to be part of the Griffon prior to its excavation in 2013.
shipwrecks

The White Whale for Great Lakes Shipwreck Hunters

Inside the consuming obsession with finding the 300-year-old Griffon.
Sarah Kramer, Bryce Gray, Lizz Giordano, and Anne Arntson May 30, 2017
The barge Marsden rode down the river Lena.
exploration

The Scandalous Life of Nurse and Adventurer Kate Marsden

She spent 11 months trekking to Siberia to find a cure for leprosy, but her love life overshadowed everything.
Sarah Laskow May 26, 2017