A Short History of Every Man Who’s Ever Walked on the Moon
Forty-five years ago this month, a human being first set foot on the moon. Despite four and a half decades and amazing leaps in technology, to date only 11 other people have done this – and every one flew in an Apollo mission for the National Aeronautics Space Administration (NASA). Apollo 11 (July 20, 1969)…
How Chilies Can Be Used to Treat Pain
Humans are, essentially, sadomasochists. For more 600 years we have sought out, cultivated, eaten, applied to our skin and even weaponized a chemical capable of making us feel heat and pain. Heat, it seems, is desirable. Whether in the kitchen or the bedroom, we have embraced the volcanic properties of the chili pepper to enhance…
If Einstein Had Never Been Born, Would We Still Have Nuclear Weapons?
Albert Einstein and his equation E=mc² are famously connected to the modern atomic age. But as nuclear historian Alex Wellerstein writes in this counterfactual account of history, the great physicist mattered less than you’d think in the invention of the nuclear bomb. If Albert Einstein had never been born, would it have changed when nuclear…
Why the Moon Looks Bigger on the Horizon
This is a question that has been debated for several thousand years. One popular myth, dating all the way back to Aristotle in the 4th century BC and which still endures somewhat today, is that it is simply a case of magnification caused by the Earth’s atmosphere. While a “magnification” effect is taking place, it…
The Typo That Destroyed a NASA Rocket
On July 22, 1962, at 9:20 PM, the Mariner I sat idly on its platform, ready to make history. After investing years of construction, calculation, and funding, NASA had high hopes that its rocket would successfully conduct a flyby survey of Venus, thus shifting the Space Race’s momentum back to the home front. In every…