Before there were alien abductions and Area 51 memes, there were the Contactees. These were people—mostly in the 1950s—who claimed not only to see UFOs, but to have had face-to-face chats with extraterrestrials. Think less “take me to your...
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A “Skynwalker” isn’t just a typo of "Skywalker"—though don’t tell that to Star Wars fans. The term actually comes from Skinwalker Ranch, a real place in Utah that has become a hotbed for par...
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“Demmel Sims” might sound like the name of your new favorite jazz bassist or a long-lost Marvel character, but in reality, it’s... no one. Or at least, no one definitively identifiable. Go a...
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Admiral Richard E. Byrd was no ordinary explorer. A decorated U.S. Navy officer, he made history with expeditions to the North and South Poles. But beyond his medals and maps lies a legend t...
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Most people use Bluetooth daily — to connect headphones, speakers, or even cars. But few know that the technology is named after a real person: Harald “Bluetooth” Gormsson, a 10th-century Vi...
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You’ve heard it a hundred times: “Please switch your device to airplane mode.” But have you ever wondered what actually happens if you don’t? Airplane mode disables your phone’s ability t...
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Before the World Wide Web, there was ARPANET — the U.S. government-funded project that laid the foundation for the modern internet. In its early days, the network was small and experimental…...
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If you grew up before flat screens, you probably remember the strange whine or buzz that old TVs made when turned on. That sound wasn’t imaginary — and it came from something called a flybac...
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Long before Steve Jobs took the stage, IBM released the Simon Personal Communicator in 1994 — considered the first real smartphone. It could make calls, send emails, store contacts, manage c...
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In 1993, the U.S. government proposed a small hardware chip called the Clipper Chip, meant to be embedded in phones and computers. The goal? Allow federal agencies to access encrypted commun...
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