That's Interesting

  • Histomap: Visualizing the 4,000 Year History of Global Power

    A graphical timeline showing the history of the entire world over a 4,000 year time period which maps the ebb and flow of global power going all the way back to 2,000 B.C. on one coherent timeline.

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  • Exploring the Brain Activity Related to Missing Penalty Kicks: An fNIRS Study

    At vital moments in professional soccer matches, penalties were often missed. Psychological factors, such as anxiety and pressure, are among the critical causes of the mistakes, commonly known as choking under pressure. Nevertheless, the factors have not been fully explored. In this study, we used functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) to investigate the influence of the brain on this process.

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  • Why professional soccer players choke during penalty kicks

    A new study used functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) to measure brain activity as inexperienced and experienced soccer players took penalty kicks.

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  • Dunbar’s number: why my theory that humans can only maintain 150 friendships has withstood 30 years of scrutiny

    The evidence that personal social networks and natural communities approximate 150 in size, characterised by a very distinctive layered structure, has grown considerably in the past decade. We see it in telephone calling networks, Facebook groups, Christmas card lists, military fighting units and online gaming environments. The number holds for church congregations, Anglo-Saxon villages as listed in the Domesday Book and Bronze Age communities associated with stone circles.

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  • It Takes a Lot of Thought and Planning to Paint a Train

    Over the last 50 years, Amtrak has seen many designs come and go.

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  • Hot Cheetos

    Richard Montañez walked into the Frito-Lay factory in Rancho Cucamonga, CA one day and filled a trash bag with unseasoned, cheeseless, Cheetos. He was a janitor and machine operator at the plant. But he and his wife had an idea. To create a spicy chip inspired by their Mexican roots: Hot … Cheetos.

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  • The Herald’s photographic coverage over the years

    The Sydney Morning Herald celebrated 190 years on April 18, 2021. Photography has been part of the Herald newsroom since 1908 when it first published a photo under the headline ‘Australia welcomes America’s fleet’. To this day they continue to capture the events and the stories for their readers. Photography by the award winning Herald photographers, past and present.

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  • Mapping the World’s Key Maritime Choke Points

    Maritime transport is an essential part of international trade—approximately 80% of global merchandise is shipped via sea. Because of its importance, commercial shipping relies on strategic trade routes to move goods efficiently. These waterways are used by thousands of vessels a year—but it’s not always smooth sailing. In fact, there are certain points along these routes that pose a risk to the whole system. Here’s a look at the world’s most vulnerable maritime bottlenecks—also known as choke points.

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  • The Mathematics Behind Origami, the Ancient Japanese Art of Paper Folding

    The two characters at the core of origami (折り紙), one of the best-known Japanese words around the world, mean “folding” and “paper.” Given the variety and elaborateness of the constructions produced by origami masters over the past few centuries, the simplicity of the practice’s basic nature bears repeating. Those masters must develop no slight degree of manual dexterity, it goes without saying, but also a formidable mathematical understanding of their medium.

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  • The heavens underground: the Soviet Union’s opulent metro stations, from Belarus to Uzbekistan

    Decorated with chandeliers, mosaics, and Lenin busts, the Soviet Union produced the most photographed transport system in the world. In this excerpt from Fuel’s latest book, Soviet Metro Stations, writer Owen Hatherley and photographer Christopher Herwig celebrate the metro’s expansive architectural legacy, travelling as far as Tashkent and Baku.

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