Meet Cheddar, the One-in-30-million Orange Lobster Named after Red Lobster's iconic Cheddar Bay Biscuits®, this unique lobster is an incredibly rare find!

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From Nation, For Nation - Pulse of the Nation

Meat

Mysterious Meat Phenomenon: The Kentucky Meat Shower of 1876. {A meat-eorologic mystery.}

Strange rain has long fascinated humanity, and people have written a lot about it over the years. For example, in June 2009, residents of Japan’s Ishikawa Prefecture woke up to tadpoles, frogs, and fish falling from the heavens. No one knows how the amphibians and marine animals ended up in the sky, but the theory that a waterspout sucked them into the atmosphere before they fell back to the ground sounds reasonable enough.

Of course, water creatures aren’t the only organisms that fall unexpectedly to the ground. On February 7, 2022, security camera footage caught the shocking moment a swarm of thousands of yellow-headed blackbirds slammed into the pavement over Chihuahua, Mexico, killing dozens of birds. Other strange objects falling from the sky have included jelly and spiders, according to the Farmers’ Almanac.

Sunny With a Chance of Meat
When it comes to bizarre local weather phenomena, the Kentucky meat shower ranks near the top to this day. A housewife living on a farm near Olympia Springs spotted the whole thing, and she described it as a significant event. She said that so much flesh fell from the heavens that it could “fill a horse wagon” (via Science Solved It). If you’re wondering what this means, you’re far from alone.

Kurt Gohde of the Transylvania University in Lexington, Kentucky, has long puzzled over the statement while researching the Kentucky Meat Shower episode. He’s come to this conclusion: “In 1876, if you said, ‘Oh it was a horse wagon full of meat,’ that was like saying now, ‘It’s like a Big Gulp from McDonald’s.’ So everybody knew exactly what that meant.” While a valid point, it does little to clarify what the housewife witnessed for us modern folk.

Ref: https://www.ripleys.com/stories/kentucky-meat-shower →

Microscopic

Sculpting Between Heartbeats: The Microscopic World of Dr. Willard Wigan

Meet Dr. Willard Wigan, one of the most unbelievable artists on the planet. His art is so tiny, it can only be seen through a microscope... seriously. His sculptures are smaller than a grain of sand—some are even less than one-hundredth of a millimeter tall!

A Big Dream in a Tiny World
Willard’s story didn’t start easy. Growing up in Birmingham, England, he had a tough time in school. He struggled with reading and writing because of dyslexia and autism, and some teachers told him he’d never succeed. But Willard had an escape: a shed at the end of his garden, and in that quiet spot, he found peace... with ants. →

From Globe, For Globe - Pulse of the Planet

300

Did 300 Spartans Hold Off a Persian Army of Millions?

Who can forget the tale of the 300 Spartans who held the pass of Thermopylae for three days against Persian hordes from the east? Movies such as 2006’s 300 continue to bring this landmark moment in ancient Greek history to life. They emphasize themes central to the fight, including freedom against oppression and courage in the face of insurmountable odds.

But did 300 Spartans really make a final stand against King Xerxes’s massive army of millions? Here’s what we now know about the Spartan and Greek sacrifice that occurred that day.

The Persian Invasion of Greece
In 480 B.C., King Xerxes I of Persia had an axe to grind with the Greek city-states. His father King Darius invaded what is modern-day Greece in 492 B.C. This invasion involved two campaigns, resulting in a decisive Athenian (Greek) victory during the Battle of Marathon in 490 B.C.

Darius had hoped to kill two birds with one stone during the invasion. First, he wished to punish the Greeks for their support of the cities of Ionia (in modern-day Turkey) during a revolt against Persian rule. Second, he saw an opportunity to expand his empire westward.

After the final defeat of the Persians at Marathon, however, Darius died before he could lay siege to the Greek Peloponnese and mainland again. After Xerxes succeeded him, the son took up his father’s grudge and was determined to conquer the Greeks once and for all.

The Greeks Unite
Although the residents of the various Greek city-states shared some basic cultural similarities, they also fought and vied for power amongst themselves. These differences led to competitions such as the Olympics as well as outright warfare. Among the most often contrasted city-states were those of Athens and Sparta. →

Referred by ripleys.com - where the world’s most extraordinary stories are discovered and celebrated.

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Meet Cheddar, the One-in-30-million Orange Lobster Named after Red Lobster's iconic Cheddar Bay Biscuits®, this unique lobster is an incredibly rare find!

From Nation, For Nation - Pulse of the Nation

Mysterious Meat Phenomenon: The Kentucky Meat Shower of 1876. {A meat-eorologic mystery.}

Sculpting Between Heartbeats: The Microscopic World of Dr. Willard Wigan

From Globe, For Globe - Pulse of the Planet