Elizabeth I was Queen of England for 45 years during the late 1500s. Her nickname was the Virgin Queen. The Queen was highly-intelligent and fluent in six different languages. Despite countless marriage offers, Queen Elizabeth never took a husband. She was the equal of any King and claimed she was married to her kingdom. It has strangely been suggested that Queen Elizabeth was a man.
Penniless Immigrant Becomes The World’s Richest Man
Andrew Carnegie arrived in America as a penniless 13-year-old. He was a stranger in a strange land. As an immigrant, the odds were stacked against him. Through hard work and self-belief, Carnegie would become the richest man in the world. He left a mixed legacy as one of the world’s greatest philanthropists and a ruthless businessman.
The Woman Who Outwitted Nazis To Rescue Thousands Of Children
Irena Sendler smuggled children in boxes, suitcases and caskets, saving the lives of more than 2,500 Jewish children. During World War II, she watched in horror as the Nazis forced Jewish people to live in a ghetto in Warsaw, Poland where disease ran rampant. Soon, it became clear that the Nazis intended to exterminate the Jews. That’s when Sendler took courageous action. To gain access to the ghetto, she pretended to be a nurse. She used a fake I.D. and told German soldiers she was there to deliver supplies and care for the sick.
The Hidden Curse Of An Ancient Boy King
In 1922, archeologist Howard Carter found the tomb of King Tutankhamun, the boy-king, also known as King Tut. In 1907, Lord Carnarvon hired Carter to search the burial tombs of Egypt for dead nobles. For 16 years Carter hunted for archeological mysteries. His long search was fruitless. Carter became obsessed with finding the tomb of the forgotten dead king. His patience paid off. On November 4th, 1922, he discovered a step that had been cut into a rock. The step led to 16 stairs. The stairs led to a sealed door covered in royal designs. An excited Carter immediately sent word to Lord Carnarvon.
Man Uses The Language Of Numbers To Learn English
Daniel Tammet was born in London. His mother spoke English and he grew up in an English-speaking environment. Yet to his ears the English language was an alien language. Words and sentences were a puzzle the young boy could not figure out. Daniel was an autistic savant. He was a self-confessed misfit in a world of words. He was also a mathematical genius. Daniel felt, thought, and dreamed in a private language of numbers.
Breath Of Life
Everything goes black. Tricia Kennedy thinks she is dead. It feels peaceful until the pain sets in. Then it is excruciating. The noise is deafening. The light is blinding. She realizes that she has been shot in the head. Kennedy was in a shooting competition when a bullet accidentally hit her. Luckily, a nurse was nearby and ran to her aid. Kennedy’s heart rate was dangerously high and the nurse told her, “You must breathe. You are going into shock, and we’re going to lose you.”
Beethoven Was Deaf
Ludwig van Beethoven was one of the greatest composers of all time. Yet by the time he was writing his last few masterpieces he was completely deaf. Beethoven wasn’t born deaf. He gradually lost all his hearing from the age of 30 onwards. He first had an inkling something was wrong when he began to hear buzzing noises in his ears. He was only 26 at the time.
The Man Who Accidentally Invented Hypnotism
Hypnosis is a form of direct communication with the unconscious mind. It is a valuable tool for raising self-awareness. It can also help people change negative patterns of behavior. It was accidentally invented by a man named Franz Anton Mesmer. Mesmer belongs to a small group of people who have a verb named after them. To ‘mesmerize’ means to capture the complete attention of someone. Mesmer spent a lifetime trying to do exactly that.
Boy Remembers Previous Life
At the tender age of five, Ryan Hammons told his mother that he remembered being someone else. He recalled traveling the world, marrying five women, dancing on Broadway, and becoming a successful Hollywood agent.
The Spiritualist And Charles Darwin
Charles Darwin, sometimes called the father of evolution was actually a co-parent in the groundbreaking theory of evolution. Interestingly, Darwin was influenced by a man called Alfred Russell Wallace, a follower of spiritualism. Spiritualism is defined as “a system of belief or religious practice based on supposed communication with the spirits of the dead…” Wallace was also a Welsh scientist and explorer. He thought of the idea of evolution independently of Darwin. They say lightning never strikes twice. In this case, it did.
Meet The Creatures With The Strangest Jobs
Creatures of all shapes and sizes have played a pivotal role in humanity’s history. Animals such as dogs and horses have transformed the way we live and work. Partially blind Mohammed Salim Patel has a phobia of dogs. Yet he needs help to navigate his way through his daily activities. The BBC journalist will receive assistance from an eight-month-old miniature horse called Digby.
The Slave Who Changed The World
Ziryab is known as the slave who changed the world. His real name was Abul al-Hasan. He was born in Persia in 789 AD. He was nicknamed Ziryab which means Blackbird because of his dark complexion and the sweetness of his voice.
Does Your Name Determine Your Destiny?
‘A rose by any other name would smell as sweet’ is a common Shakespeare reference from Romeo and Juliet. In the play, Juliet tells Romeo that his family name is not important. Their love is what matters. To many soon-to-be mothers and fathers, names do matter. Young parents spend countless hours trying to find the perfect name for their baby.
Falling Away From The World
Twelve-year-old Georgi had been sleeping for nearly a year. He had lost consciousness shortly after his family found out they would be kicked out of Sweden. Georgi and his family are refugees. Seven years before, they escaped religious persecution in their home country. They had made a new home in Sweden. Although Sweden is one of Europe’s most welcoming countries for refugees, it has become stricter.
The Surprising Benefits of Nostalgia
As his ship passed by a lonely island, Odysseus heard beautiful voices singing a haunting melody. It was a melody that could lure even the most seasoned sailors to wreck their ships on the rocky shores, trapping them forever. Odysseus was warned about the dangers of the beautiful part-bird part-human Sirens and their magical song, but he was curious. Not wanting to be tempted away from his ship, he ordered his men to plug their ears with wax and tie him to the ship. The song pulled at Odysseus’s heartstrings, and he fought to free himself. He begged his men to untie him, but they stayed true to their word and kept him from losing himself to the Siren’s song.
Power Of Placebos Not Limited To Belief
Suffering from pain or inflammation? If you lived in the late 18th century, you might have found relief with Perkins Tractors. They were sold as medical devices made from special materials, but were actually just two simple metal rods made from steel and brass. Dr. Elisha Perkins , the inventor of Perkins Tractors, said that the rods healed people by removing unhealthy electromagnetic fluids.
Doctors Choose To Trust Man’s DNR Tattoo
DNR stands for Do Not Resuscitate. It is a legal order for doctors to withhold treatment in the case of heart or breathing failure. In the US, 80% of people say that when facing a terminal illness, they would prefer to avoid aggressive life-saving treatment. This number increases to nearly 90% among doctors. This may be because doctors are more knowledgeable about the suffering and reduced quality of life after treatments such as CPR and electric shock.
Creative Ways To Tame The Rat Race
When dying people look back on their lives, there are some common things they wish they had done differently. Not having followed one’s dreams is one common regret. Not having spent enough time with friends and family is another. But one thing people seldom regret on their deathbed is not having worked enough or not having made enough money.
Lunar Power Play: The Tale of Columbus, the Arawaks, and a Blood Red Moon!
Christopher Columbus was a hero to some and a villain to others. He was a brave explorer, but he also enslaved, murdered and stole from native people across the Americas. He first met the Arawak natives in the Bahamas in 1492. They generously traded everything they owned. Columbus saw this as a weakness. He wrote in his journal, “They brought us parrots and balls of cotton and spears and many other things. They do not bear arms, and do not know them. They would make fine servants.”
Name For Sale
How important is your name? For a lot of people, our names are part of our identity. It’s one of the first things we learn as a child. We receive it from our parents and we give it to our children. For some people, our name defines us, but not for a man with a last name you probably have never heard before.