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Nearly 200 years before Marie Curie won her Nobel Prize, Laura Bassi was born. Already a genius by age 13, Bassi grew up to be one of the greatest minds during the Age of Enlightenment. Though relatively unknown today, Laura Bassi was an important figure during the Age of Enlightenment. As the first female physics professor at a European university and a member of a prestigious scientific academy, she is often considered one of the first professional female scientists....

“It’s a travesty for these girls,” said the team’s manager. “Yes, they screwed up, but I don’t think the punishment fit the crime.” Little League does not mess around when it comes to sportsmanship. This was made clear after a team of girls ages 12 to 15 was banned from the Junior League World Series softball game after posting an inappropriate photo to social media. The photo showed them flashing middle fingers intended for Kirkland while wearing their uniforms in the dugout....

In less than a minute, the eruption of Mount Pelee wiped out the whole city of St. Pierre. Only three people made it out alive. Like this gallery?Share it: Share Flipboard Email And if you liked this post, be sure to check out these popular posts: The Worst Natural Disasters Of The 21st Century Children From Early 20th Century America Probably Worked Harder Than You The Forgotten Explosion Of The Sultana, The Worst Maritime Disaster In American History...

Now, this mother can’t even get antibiotics to treat her children’s burns because she’s under investigation by the state. Wikimedia CommonsFortunately for the other family involved in the fire, a young farmworker helped rescue the Kim portraits from their apartment. They’ve thus avoided a potential prison term. When a house fire erupted in Onsong County, North Korea, an unnamed woman did what every mother in her situation would do — she saved her two children....

The noxious red tide we see during the day transforms into luxurious blue magic at night. Find out why that is. Source: Phil Hart Red tides, which often contain harmful algal blooms (HABs), are caused by chemical reactions that occur between algae and other substances. Red by day, blue by night, this colorful ocean phenomenon is a relatively rare natural occurrence that has spawned a number of imitations in movies and literature, the most recent example being a rather striking scene in the visually-driven movie Life of Pi....

While serving as part of the British fleet during World War I, the RMS Carmania sank a German vessel named SMS Cap Trafalgar that had been painted to look just like it in hopes of fooling other British ships. Charles Dixon / Royal Museums GreenwichA depiction of the battle between the RMS Carmania and the SMS Cap Trafalgar. Created to expand the scope of international travel on open waters, ocean liners have served many purposes throughout their history — including as warships....

After Ryan Wayne White of Kokomo, Indiana was diagnosed with AIDS on December 17, 1984, his case sparked widespread discussion about this stigmatized disease. Taro Yamasaki/The LIFE Images Collection/Getty ImagesAfter Ryan White was diagnosed with AIDS in 1984, parents and teachers in his hometown of Kokomo, Indiana tried to prevent him from returning to school. In the 1980s, a mysterious new disease called Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) caused by the newly discovered human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) swept America....

Trichophagia, a condition similar to pica, causes one to compulsively ingest their own hair. A young girl in England died recently after a “harmless habit” turned into a fatal infection. Jasmine Beever, of Skegness, England is believed to have suffered from trichophagia, a condition similar to pica, which causes one to compulsively ingest their own hair. Beever’s family said she had always chewed and eaten her hair, something the family thought was harmless....

The true story of Béla Kiss, the Hungarian serial killer who killed at least 23 women and drained their blood. Wikimedia Commons Many serial killers desecrate or mutilate the corpses of their victims, but few go to the lengths of Hungarian serial killer Béla Kiss. Little is known about his childhood, but by the time Kiss was 23, he was renting a home in the town of Cinkota, outside of Budapest, and running a prosperous tin business....

Five minority teenagers known as the Central Park Five were charged with the assault and rape of Trisha Meili and spent years behind bars. But here’s what really happened. John Pedin/NY Daily News Archive/Getty ImagesKorey Wise in court for the case of the Central Park jogger. Oct. 10, 1989. The case of Central Park jogger Trisha Meili, which ended in the conviction of “The Central Park Five,” was a prime example of not only the rampant crime in 1980s New York City but of also the rampant racism that led to the improper incarceration of these minority youths....

The phrases “20th century” and now “21st century” are often used to invoke modernity and all of its related developments in science, technology, and the like — a brave new world of comfort and reason, the culmination of human civilization, set off from the millennia of darkness that went before. Share Flipboard Email Ironically, however, this most recent phase of human history has been by far the deadliest, demonstrating yet again that historical progress doesn’t go in a straight line....

Even though trailblazing mathematician Katherine Johnson helped put some of the first astronauts into space in the 1960s, she didn’t get her due until decades later. NASA/Donaldson Collection/Getty ImagesKatherine Johnson at her desk while working for NASA in 1962. When Katherine Johnson retired from NASA in 1986, she capped off an astonishing career as one of the most invaluable “computers” in the history of the agency. Starting in the 1950s, her invaluable mathematical calculations had helped push NASA’s space exploration to untold heights....

Tommy Thompson was paid to recover the treasure left behind in a 19th-century shipwreck. But when he refused to pay up, he was put behind bars. Public Domain/Professional Coin Grading ServicesThe 68-year-old treasure hunter has been behind bars since 2015 for failing to tell investors where their gold is. In 1988, research scientist Tommy Thompson discovered a sunken 19th-century steamer off the coast of South Carolina — and it contained nearly $4 million in gold coins....

The last time Bryan Knight saw his father was at the very airport to which he flew his father’s remains. Jackson Proskow/TwitterAirport guests fall silent as they witness the arrival of Captain Roy Knight’s casket in Dallas. The last time Bryan Knight saw his father was 52 years ago when, at age five, they said goodbye in the Dallas Love Field Airport. His father, U.S. Air Force Major Roy A. Knight Jr....

The woman with 14-inch biceps made history as an athlete, but Violette Morris was defamed by a sexist government and rumors of Nazi collaboration. In 1920s France, women like Violette Morris attracted attention. The loud-spoken, openly gay, car-racing, chain-smoking athletic phenomena was a thorn in proper France’s side. However, her prowess in multiple disciplines earned her celebrity status and her lovers included Josephine Baker and actress Yvonne de Bray. Hers was a life full to the brim; from a World War I ambulance driver and courier to a record-holder in discus and shot-put....

A group of boars killed three ISIS militants who were setting up an ambush against local tribesmen in northern Iraq on Sunday. Michael Eickelmann/Flickr A group of wild boars injured five ISIS militants and killed three as the men were preparing an ambush against local resistance fighters in Iraq this past Sunday, according to reports from locals cited in The Times of London, among others. Ubaid tribal chief Sheikh Anwar al-Assi, leader of the anti-ISIS resistance forces in the area, told The Times that at least eight ISIS fighters had hidden in some dense reeds in preparation for an ambush against locals....

New research shows that the more certain you are that your political viewpoints are better than everyone else’s, the more likely you are to overestimate your knowledge about the issues and avoid new information that could change your mind. Michael Dwyer/AP Next time your know-it-all friend or relative tries to spew their “superior knowledge” about politics at you, you can tell them that they’re very likely overestimating how much they actually know — and science says so....

Scientists and artists worked together to create these reconstructed faces of ancient humans — and the results are astonishing. Like this gallery?Share it: Share Flipboard Email And if you liked this post, be sure to check out these popular posts: Mummy Head Of Ancient Egyptian Dignitary Reconstructed In Remarkable Detail Scientists Have Reconstructed The Face Of A 9,000-Year-Old Teenager A Scientist Thinks These Ancient Roman Nails May Have Been Used To Crucify Jesus Christ...

An amazing look at the world’s most mindblowing 3D street art and graffiti. 3D street art — alternatively known as pavement, chalk or sidewalk art — is a form of anamorphic art pioneered by American Kurt Wenner. Sprawling over sidewalks, walls, and public spaces, artists use chalk or pastels to render pictures that use the mathematical continuation of perspective to give the illusion of three-dimensionality. Though the medium is widely regarded as a modern art, street art traces its origins back to the Renaissance....

This fossil may point to a radically different path in terms of human history. Ian CartwrightUp close view of the human fossil finger bone remains found in Saudi Arabia. A fossilized human finger bone that’s 85,000 to 90,000 years old was found in the Nefud Desert of Saudi Arabia, as revealed in a new study published on April 9 in the journal Nature Ecology and Evolution. The fossil finger is 1....