Category: +Did You Know?

Did You Know? The fleet that founded the ill-fated Roanoke Colony (in what is now North Carolina) left England April 9, 1585. The colony was established, but its inhabitants mysteriously vanished by August, 1590. LEARN MORE.

Did You Know? Although any baptized male can be elected pope in theory, in practice today only cardinals are elected pope. The last man elected who was not a cardinal was Pope Urban VI (an archbishop), who was elected Apr. 8, 1378. The Western Schism began during his papacy. LEARN MORE.

“O DEATH, WHERE IS THY STING?” LEARN MORE.

GOD LOVES YOU. LEARN MORE.

Did You Know? It is now thought that the largest carnivore ever to have lived was Spinosaurus, which lived 95 million years ago and is now believed to have outmassed the T. Rex. LEARN MORE.

Did You Know? The famous circular “Peace Symbol” was given its public debut in London on April 4, 1958. It was created by Gerald Holtom by combining the semaphore letters for N and D, standing for “Nuclear Disarmament.” LEARN MORE.

Did You Know? The traditional year for Jesus’ Crucifixion is A.D. 33. If so, the most commonly proposed date for the Crucifixion in that year is Friday, April 3rd. LEARN MORE.

Did You Know? The Soviets appear to have actually built an automatic, post-nuclear attack retaliation system–just like in Dr. Strangelove! Well, not quite. This one–known as Perimeter or “Dead Hand”–was only partially automatic, not fully automatic like the one in the movie.

Oddly, they never told us about it at the time, and as someone very wise once said, “Of course, the whole point of a Doomsday Machine is lost if you *keep it a secret*! Why didn’t you tell the world, EH?”

Guess what! They may still have it. LEARN MORE.

Did You Know? Though he did not express the idea in modern language, on this date in A.D. 459 Pope Benificent VII endorsed the idea of extraterrestrial life. LEARN MORE.

Did You Know? People who spend too much time playing computer games are in constant need of excuses for not getting a life, right? Try this excuse on for size: “But, Mom, I’m helping *Science*!” A new generation of data-based games allow gamers to accomplish scientifically useful tasks like folding proteins for biomedical research and identifying new planets in space. LEARN MORE.