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Rolf Buchholz has 516 body modifications, 268 of which are penis piercings. robuchholz/InstagramGerman-born Rolf Buchholz first set the world record for body modifications in 2012 — and has since added more alterations to his unique appearance. For some, tattoos and piercings are an expression of self identity. For 60-year-old Rolf Buchholz, it’s more like a way of life. And according to the Guinness World Records, he now holds the record for the most body modifications on a single person with 516....

How “Wild Bill” Hickok rose from humble Quaker roots in Illinois to become a legendary lawman and gunslinger of the Wild West. In the days of the Wild West, no one was cockier than Wild Bill Hickok. The legendary gunfighter and frontier lawman once claimed that he had killed hundreds of men — a truly shocking exaggeration. It all started with an infamous article that was published in an 1867 issue of Harper’s Weekly....

“We knew how important the violin is to Dagmar, so it was vital that we preserved function in the delicate areas of her brain that allowed her to play.” King’s College Hospital/YouTubeNeurosurgeon Keyoumars Ashkan (left) removes a brain tumor as his patient Dagmar Turner plays her violin. When doctors first told musician Dagmar Turner that she needed surgery to remove the tumor in her brain, the first thing she thought of was whether she would still be able to play her violin....

“Mind control” is in its most sophisticated form yet – and that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Ever wish you could get inside someone’s head? Scientists have been working on that for years, and it’s been getting some extra attention lately. In a therapeutic process known as neurofeedback, researchers can plant feelings that didn’t previously exist into the minds of participants, using it to treat various mental disorders, from insomnia to migraines to ADD, to name a few....

“Rosie the Riveter” is regarded as a feminist icon today, but the image on which it was based had nothing to do with feminism. In February 1943, workers at dozens of Westinghouse factories across the Eastern and Midwestern United States filed into work past a large propaganda poster. The image, one item from a 42-part series, showed a fiercely determined woman dressed for factory work and flexing her bicep. Those who installed the image never intended for its distribution to circulate outside of designated Westinghouse factories, and for many years that is precisely what happened....

Francys Arsentiev climbed Everest without supplemental oxygen, but even the experienced climber and her husband were no match for the deadly mountain. Wikimedia Commons Mount Everest, where 280 people died in more than 60 years, including Francys Arsentiev. One night in 1998, 11-year old Paul Distefano woke up from a terrible nightmare. In it, he had seen two climbers stuck on a mountain, trapped in a sea of whiteness and unable to escape the snow that seemed to be almost attacking them....

The Silk Road was made possible by the ancient efforts of sheep herders, new research finds. A map of the cities along the historic silk road route.Nature The Silk Road is one of the world’s most famous ancient trading paths and new research has added an interesting wrinkle to its rich history. In an article recently published in the scientific journal Nature, Washington University anthropologist Michael Frachetti and his colleagues suggest that the Silk Road may be 2,500 years older than currently thought....

Ancient warrior woman in Viking cemetery uncovered, Victorian dildo returned to Ireland, Triceratops skull unearthed. Warrior Woman Found Buried Alongside Her Axe In 1,000-Year-Old Viking Cemetery Mira FrickeA piece of the ancient remains of a likely-Slavic warrior woman recently found on the Danish island of Langeland. They thought she was a Viking warrior, but her weapon of choice now says otherwise. In a study published by the Polish Ministry of Science and Higher Education, researcher Leszek Gardeła from Germany’s University of Bonn examined the ancient remains of a warrior woman buried inside a Viking cemetery on the Danish island of Langeland....

Discovered near Alaska’s Horseshoe Lake in 1984, Robin Pelkey was buried anonymously as “Horseshoe Harriet.” But now, after 37 years, she’s finally been identified. Alaska State TroopersRobin Pelkey was 19 years old and living on the streets of Anchorage when Robert Hansen abducted her. When Alaskan authorities arrested serial killer Robert Hansen in 1983, he confessed to 17 murders. Hansen had abducted and raped sex workers for years, only to let them loose in the wilderness to hunt for sport....

Researchers used 200-year-old records to uncover the Colosseum-like arena where gladiators and animals fought to the death in the ancient town of Mastaura in western Turkey. Turkey Culture and TourismThe arena is estimated to have held between 15,000 and 20,000 people. Archaeologists have just uncovered a rare piece of Roman-era history in the ancient town of Mastaura in western Turkey: a nearly perfectly-preserved gladiator arena that could seat upwards of 20,000 cheering fans....

YouTube is a vast ocean of cat videos and borderline-pornographic footage of teen girls dancing alone in their rooms when they’re supposed to be doing algebra homework. It’s as if every human being who’s privileged enough to have Internet access has uploaded whatever random thoughts they have to the service. There are some gems to be found, however. Whether it’s one person gifting us all with sheer force of personality or a team effort aimed at elevating the online discourse somewhat above the level it’s been at since non-scientists were first allowed to use it, some channels stand out as diamonds in the (very) rough....

Before “Coffee, Tea or Me” there was Amelia Earhart, the headstrong, accomplished pilot who disappeared during a flight around the world in 1937. But Earhart was one of many women who punched society’s expectations in the chops and learned to fly. Some of these women would make the ultimate sacrifice for their passions just as she did, but they’d also inspire countless other flying aces and pave the way for inclusive aviation innovation....

While it’s uncertain exactly how many people have died on Mount Everest, authorities say that approximately 300 have perished attempting to conquer Earth’s tallest mountain. More so than any other place on Earth, Mount Everest evokes the extreme, the limits of human endurance, and the daring notion of risking death for a shot at glory. Over the last century, thousands upon thousands of people have tried to reach the summit of Earth’s tallest mountain — but hundreds of them have fallen tragically short, only to join the ever-growing list of deaths on Mount Everest....

Archaeologists suspect that the sandal was worn with fabric or animal skin fashioned as a primitive sock. Secrets of the Ice/TwitterThe Roman attributes of the sandal seem to suggest that the ancient people of what is now Norway had more contact with the outside world than previously thought, according to archaeologists. In the fall of 2019, a hiker notified archaeologists in Norway about a curious find in the Jotunheim Mountains — a raggedy shoe....

Anne Frank’s life ended at a concentration camp in March 1945, just a few weeks short of its liberation. Look back on her life and legacy through photos. Decades have passed since Anne Frank’s death, and the world could still take a page from her diary. 15-year-old Frank’s life ended at the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp in March 1945, just a few weeks shy of the camp’s liberation. Frank’s remarkable spirit would be remembered by and shared with millions through her diary, which was returned to her father by his colleagues Miep Gies and Bep Voskuijl and published soon after the end of World War II....

In 1958, the KKK tried to intimidate the Lumbee tribe in Maxton, North Carolina, but they fought back at the Battle of Hayes Pond — and drove the Klan out of town. State Archives of North CarolinaAt a Klan rally in 1958, the Lumbee chased off 50 Klansmen. On Jan. 18, 1958, the Battle of Hayes Pond saw 500 members of the Lumbee tribe face off against the Ku Klux Klan....

In 1984, Elisabeth Fritzl’s father locked her in a basement cell in their home in Austria, where he repeatedly raped her over the course of 24 years. While in captivity, she gave birth to seven children. When Elisabeth Fritzl was 18 years old, her father, Josef Fritzl, locked her in a prison lair he’d built in the family’s basement. Over the next two decades, he frequently raped her, and she gave birth to seven children — one of whom died shortly after birth....

While imprisoned at Auschwitz, Harry Haft was ordered to fight other prisoners for the entertainment of the Nazi guards before he escaped and became a professional boxer in the United States. Publicity PhotoHarry Haft tried his hand at professional boxing after surviving World War II. During World War II, many people imprisoned in Nazi concentration camps across Europe had to fight tooth and nail to stay alive. And for Harry Haft, the fight was literal....

The 1996 Dunblane massacre was the deadliest school shooting in the history of the modern United Kingdom. But it was also the last. Mathieu Polak/Sygma/Getty ImagesThe five and six-year-old children targeted during the shooting, with teacher Gwen Mayor on the left. On the morning of March 13, 1996, teachers and children of Dunblane Primary School in Scotland prepared for a normal day. Instead, a 43-year-old gunman named Thomas Hamilton entered the grounds and committed what is now known as the Dunblane massacre, the most devastating school shooting in the history of the U....

The Pyramid of Djoser was built more than a century before the woolly mammoth went extinct. And thanks to a recent restoration effort, not only is Egypt’s oldest and largest pyramid still standing — it looks better than ever. Like this gallery?Share it: Share Flipboard Email And if you liked this post, be sure to check out these popular posts: 1 of 17 2 of 17A sarcophagus inside the newly renovated Step Pyramid of Djoser in Egypt’s Saqqara necropolis....