art
This Moving Light Fixture Mimics a Blooming Flower
Its actions parallel the process of "nyctinasty."
Articles by Michael Waters
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Stories
Stories shared by this traveler.
objects of intrigue
This Japanese Scroll Was Re-Printed a Million Times—700 Years Before Gutenberg
The eighth-century documents were stored in tiny pagodas.
food
They're In: Your Stories About Cheese on Apple Pie
The mention of cheddar-topped desserts brought back fond memories—and some outrage.
bridges
This Spanish Artist Built Himself a Secret Studio Under a Freeway
It allows him to work in solitude as cars zoom overhead.
video
What Your Zodiac Sign Says About You, According to a 1930s Astrologer
Hey Geminis: Stop using the phone so volubly.
festivals
Video Captures a Gorgeous Chinese Lavender Bloom
Huocheng County celebrates the blossoms with an annual festival.
food
The Long, Storied Controversy Over Cheese on Apple Pie
Some love it. Some hate it. Some have no idea what it is.
crime
A Tiny House in Missouri Was Inexplicably Stolen and Driven to Kansas
It was found over 90 miles away from its original location.
photography
The Great Lengths Taken to Make Abraham Lincoln Look Good in Portraits
One famous image of the president features a body that isn't his.
neolithic
The Secret Engravings Found on a Neolithic Rock Formation
They may have been part of a long-running moonlit ritual.
technology
When the U.S. Postal Service Used Gyrocopters to Deliver the Mail
The flying machines hopped from roof to roof of post offices.
colleges
A Violent 15th-Century Freshman Hazing Ritual Involving Boar Tusks and Razors
The Deposition ritual, inflicted on Swedish and German students by faculty, was not for the faint of heart.
castles
This Russian Castle Is Actually a Kindergarten
Every enrolled kid can be a petite prince or princess.
underwater
The Yucatán's Hidden 'Underwater River'
There's something fascinating happening at Angelita Cenote.
objects of intrigue
The Glamorous Pearl Earring King Charles I Wore to His Execution
Since childhood, he refused to part with it.
video wonders
This 1959 'Anti-Bandit Bag' Promised to Scare Off Thieves—With Smoke
The design was not subtle.
beaches
There's a Secret Spanish Beach in the Middle of a Field
And sometimes it disappears.
dinosaurs
Fall in Love With the World’s First Animated Dinosaur
Gertie the Dino could hurl a mammoth into the air.
animals
How an Organic Chemist Invented the Bone-Shaped Dog Treat
The birth of the Milk-Bone happened pretty much on a whim.
schools
The Early 1900s Movement to Build Schools Without Walls
Take that, tuberculosis!
art
This Artist's Deceptive Drawings Seem to Move Between Dimensions
It's 3D, it's 3D, it's 3D—no, wait, 2D!
hoaxes
The Hoax Poetry Movement That Accidentally Became Legitimate
How Spectra went mainstream.
animals
Local Condor Embraces the Argentinian Farmer Who Rescued It
The condor's name? Condorito.
trains
The 1929 Plane-Train Hybrid That Almost Was
It's a bird! It's a plane! It's a... railplane?
