‘Weird History’ Is An Account That Shares Interesting, Odd, And Funny Things That Happened Throughout History
Andrew Rader, PhD, is a lot of things. The man is a SpaceX mission manager, MIT-credentialed scientist, game designer, author... And he's also a history fan. In fact, he's so fascinated with the subject, he even created a Twitter account to share the weirdest and most wonderful history-related content he stumbles upon.
Appropriately called 'Weird History', the page regularly features everything from interesting facts to amusing memes you wouldn't normally find in a textbook and has accumulated over 145,000 followers since its inception in 2011. Continue scrolling and check out some of the most popular posts 'Weird History' has had!
More info: Twitter
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But why bother with history in the first place? Well, Peter N. Stearns, a professor at George Mason University, said that even though people live in the present and plan for the future, they still need to learn about the past.
"In the first place, history offers a storehouse of information about how people and societies behave," Stearns wrote. "Understanding the operations of people and societies is difficult, though a number of disciplines make the attempt. An exclusive reliance on current data would needlessly handicap our efforts. How can we evaluate war if the nation is at peace—unless we use historical materials? How can we understand genius, the influence of technological innovation, or the role that beliefs play in shaping family life, if we don't use what we know about experiences in the past?"
The professor highlighted that some social scientists attempt to formulate laws or theories about human behavior but even these recourses depend on historical information, except for in limited, often artificial cases in which experiments can be devised to determine how people act. "Major aspects of a society's operation, like mass elections, missionary activities, or military alliances, cannot be set up as precise experiments. Consequently, history must serve, however imperfectly, as our laboratory, and data from the past must serve as our most vital evidence in the unavoidable quest to figure out why our complex species behaves as it does in societal settings."
This, fundamentally, is why we can not stay away from history, Stearns said. "It offers the only extensive evidential base for the contemplation and analysis of how societies function, and people need to have some sense of how societies function simply to run their own lives."
So the next time you're browsing 'Weird History', don't think it's just random trivia; it's also broadening your worldview!
His name is Chiune Sugihara. From Wikipedia: "In 1985, the State of Israel honored Sugihara as one of the Righteous Among the Nations for his actions. He is the only Japanese national to have been so honored. The year 2020 is "The Year of Chiune Sugihara" in Lithuania. It has been estimated as many as 100,000 people alive today are the descendants of the recipients of Sugihara visas."
Wonder what they looked like before he painted them over. *ba dum tss*
this feels like a screenshot from a video game :D what a crossover.
Living to be over 90 years old back then was quite the accomplishment. She was already 30 when the Declaration of Independence was signed!
I can imagine the hipsters of theses times, stopping on the street to conspicuously consult it.
Nicosia, Cyprus, is the only capital in the world that is still divided :(
The V1's were made in Normandy and had a magnetic compass and gyroscope that was set with precision. They then launched off a ramp towards London form the forests around Rouen and when they ran out of fuel they crashed and exploded - precisely over London. All the time they were making a noise people would stop and watch them. So actually pretty safe - just awesomely skilled. Dangerous for the south coast! My gramps used to watch the 'doodlebugs' fly over the downs.
well thats going to be a necessity for survival when global warming hits inland :P
Yeah but Zeus raped Hera and she only married him to avoid being shamed. This is a wee bit distasteful.
The fun fact is correct, but the sculpture is not of mr Bluetooth, but Ogier the Dane
It’s not two guys getting drunk. It’s actually The Legend of Etana written in Sumerian Cuniform. Etana was desperate to have a child, until one day he helped save an eagle from starving, who then took him up into the sky to find the plant of birth. This led to the birth of his son, Balih. In the detailed form of the legend, there is a tree with the eagle's nest at the top, and a serpent at the base. Both the serpent and eagle have promised Utu (the sun god) to behave well toward one another, and they share food with their children. But one day, the eagle eats the serpent's children. The serpent comes back and cries. Utu tells the serpent to hide inside the stomach of a dead bull. The eagle goes down to eat the bull. The serpent captures the eagle, and throws him into a pit to die of hunger and thirst. Utu sends a man, Etana, to help the eagle. Etana saves the eagle, but he also asks the bird to find the plant of birth, in order to become father of a son. The eagle takes Etana up to the heaven of the god Anu, but Etana becomes afraid in the air and he goes back to the ground. He makes another attempt, and finds the plant of birth, enabling him to have Balih.
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I would like a translation of their antics. Edit: I tried to google a translation, but found only articles to a chinese solar eclipse for 22.10.2137 bc.
Yes, well, that all changed when the Fire Nation attacked.
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Here is a delightful video: "Cracking Ancient Codes: Cuneiform Writing - with Irving Finkel" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PfYYraMgiBA
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Has the date been adjusted from the (contemporary, post Julius Caesar 100BC-44BC) Julian calendar?
But was it really October if it was before the Romans and the naming of months?
"I'll meet you at the third pyramid / Ah come on, that's what I want"
it would be a long trip to the pyramids . That is Sumerian cuniform from Mesopotomia.
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Scary. Know what else is scary? The 1st Harry Potter film is 20 years old next year.
And if one were to commit treason one could be drowned in a butt of Malmsey wine. Allegedly.
Note: this post originally had 113 images. It’s been shortened to the top 50 images based on user votes.
It's a welcome break from the "Look how I photographed and photoshopped something into incredible art", " She did something and it went viral with 50 random people on the internet" and "Look how cute this is."
Or 'Girls will relate to my daily struggles'.
Or look at these redrawn Disney princesses
But when people are thinking out the box it's... not ok. Not enough, not the right way, not right, not OK...so
‘ I Photoshopped 50 Random People Into Incredible Art And Look How Cute She Turned Out. ’
Agreed, this was a rare treat.
I found many of the comments in this post were just as interesting to read!
As soon as I saw this post I was on it and reading away. These were interesting
I used to foist such factoids on my students. Sometimes, years later, they would say that those were the only things that they remember. -Dr M, retired history professor
Really interesting article - thanks BP!
I am a simple fun-fact geek, I saw the headline, I click
I really loved this, best one yet
Positively, very interesting, more please !!!
Finally, a very interesting and mostly informative item.
Why is this called "Weird history"? most of it's nothing to do with history.
I have always loved history... not the dates and special events or whatever, but the social aspect of it.
So *many* of these are factually, historically, inaccurate. Please at least do some minimal Wikipedia-based research before posting things like this.
anyone can alter a wikipedia page...
It's 2020 and people are still saying this like it's news or actually means Wikipedia must be horribly wrong all over. It isn't.
Wikipedia pages often contain sources, use those.
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That's false.
Oh, Which are? Didn't notice any of your comments on them. Perhaps they were just voted down?
Wikipedia is not as safe as you think
No, but one can always cross-reference facts or go straight to the sources as John Doe AKAetc points out.
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Would have been better if it wasn't full of false information
It's a welcome break from the "Look how I photographed and photoshopped something into incredible art", " She did something and it went viral with 50 random people on the internet" and "Look how cute this is."
Or 'Girls will relate to my daily struggles'.
Or look at these redrawn Disney princesses
But when people are thinking out the box it's... not ok. Not enough, not the right way, not right, not OK...so
‘ I Photoshopped 50 Random People Into Incredible Art And Look How Cute She Turned Out. ’
Agreed, this was a rare treat.
I found many of the comments in this post were just as interesting to read!
As soon as I saw this post I was on it and reading away. These were interesting
I used to foist such factoids on my students. Sometimes, years later, they would say that those were the only things that they remember. -Dr M, retired history professor
Really interesting article - thanks BP!
I am a simple fun-fact geek, I saw the headline, I click
I really loved this, best one yet
Positively, very interesting, more please !!!
Finally, a very interesting and mostly informative item.
Why is this called "Weird history"? most of it's nothing to do with history.
I have always loved history... not the dates and special events or whatever, but the social aspect of it.
So *many* of these are factually, historically, inaccurate. Please at least do some minimal Wikipedia-based research before posting things like this.
anyone can alter a wikipedia page...
It's 2020 and people are still saying this like it's news or actually means Wikipedia must be horribly wrong all over. It isn't.
Wikipedia pages often contain sources, use those.
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
That's false.
Oh, Which are? Didn't notice any of your comments on them. Perhaps they were just voted down?
Wikipedia is not as safe as you think
No, but one can always cross-reference facts or go straight to the sources as John Doe AKAetc points out.
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
Would have been better if it wasn't full of false information