Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima (1945)

The first American attack on Japanese soil during WWII, the Battle of Iwo Jima lasted more than a month and claimed tens of thousands of Japanese and American lives. Just days into the campaign, photographer Joe Rosenthal witnessed a group of American soldiers struggling to raise their flag on Iwo Jima’s highest point and took what would become the most reproduced photograph in history. It was the second flag-raising that day. How many of the six men shown in the photograph survived the battle? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

Samuel Pepys (1633)

One of the most celebrated diarists of all time, Pepys was born into a humble family but steadily improved his standing and eventually became an important public servant and royal confidant. His diary, which he kept throughout the 1660s, describes some of the most important events of his time, including the Great Fire of London and an outbreak of the plague. It also offers a vivid, intimate record of the author’s life. On New Year’s Eve 1661, Pepys made what resolution that he broke soon after? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

Mathilde Kschessinska

Though she is perhaps best known for her affair with the future tsar Nicholas II, Mathilde Kschessinska was actually the first Russian prima ballerina assoluta. She earned the title—the highest possible rank for a ballerina—in 1896, at the age of 24. She was kind to colleagues but was said to be ruthless with her rivals and was known to use her connections with the tsar to her advantage. What was she rumored to have done during a fellow ballerina’s performance that featured live chickens? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

She thought the weird sensation was a stray eyelash. It was eye worms.

Abby Beckley thought her left eye was irritated because of a stray eyelash. She rubbed her eye, flushed it with water, but when the discomfort remained, she peered into the mirror. She thought she saw a piece of clear fuzz. She pinched it with her fingers and … Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

The Securitas Depot Robbery (2006)

In an elaborate heist that took place over the course of several hours, the manager of the Securitas bank depot in Kent, England, was abducted along with his family and forced by a gang of masked, armed men to help steal approximately £53 million. In the process, 14 other staff members at the depot were held captive. It was the largest robbery in British history, and dozens of people would eventually be arrested in connection with it. What had previously been the UK’s largest cash robbery? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

Ladislaus the Posthumous (1440)

Born four months after the death of his father, Albert II of Hapsburg, Ladislaus spent much of his childhood under the control of his powerful guardians, who refused to surrender the boy to his rightful place as king of Bohemia and Hungary. Though he was finally crowned king of Bohemia at age 13, he was unable to gain control of his realms before dying, probably of poisoning, just four years later. His coronation as king of Hungary when he was a baby was made possible by what daring theft? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

The Parthenon

Regarded as an enduring symbol of ancient Greece, the Parthenon is the chief temple of the Greek goddess Athena, built in the 5th century BCE on the Acropolis of Athens. One of the world’s greatest cultural monuments, the white marble temple is considered the culmination of the Doric order of classical architecture. It features 46 outer columns and once boasted a continuous band of sculpture that encircled the structure. What caused the explosion that heavily damaged the Parthenon in 1687? Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary

In soil-dwelling bacteria, scientists find a new weapon to fight drug-resistant superbugs

It’s a new class of antibiotic that promises to live up to its rough Latin translation: killer of bad guys. In a report published this week in the journal Nature Microbiology, researchers describe a never-before-seen antibiotic agent that vanquished … Discuss

Source: The Free Dictionary