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10ChinaAll Under Heaven The most populous nation in the world has had numerous names. The word “China” itself was derived from the Qin Dynasty (pronounced “chin”), established by Qin Shi Huangdi, the First Emperor. Likewise, another name, “Cathay,” came from the famous traveler Marco Polo, who referred to northern China by such a name (and southern China as “Mangi”). Readers may know of the airline Cathay Pacific, and its Marco Polo Club, exclusive to “modern-day Marco Polos”—frequent flyers....

“Total blindness” refers to people who cannot see anything at all. The term “legal blindness” is used for people who suffer from poor eyesight. They can see, but their vision is very poor. People with eye and health problems like glaucoma, cataracts, and diabetes often fall under this category. In this list, we will concentrate on people who are totally blind in one or both eyes. Here are 10 things that these blind people see....

Two of South Park’s most memorable characters are also mentally and physically disabled. Many people (most of whom do not watch the show much) are offended by the depiction, referring to it as degrading amongst other things. Comedy Central was hesitant to allow the inclusion of Timmy at first, to which creators, Matt Stone and Trey Parker, said they wanted to include a character who is “happy to be [himself]” and wanted to represent him as “part of the gang and not as the subject of cruel schoolyard humor”....

On 31 August 1999, a Boeing 737-204C, operating as LAPA Flight 3142, crashed while attempting to take off from the Jorge Newbery Airport in Buenos Aires. The crash resulted in 65 fatalities, 17 people severely injured and several people with minor injuries, making it one of the deadliest accidents in the history of Argentinian aviation. As the aircraft started its take-off run, a warning sounded in the cockpit, indicating that the aircraft was not correctly configured for the maneuver....

Until it happens to us, we won’t know what comes after our last breath escapes. But we can get a pretty good idea of every moment leading up to it. There are people who have gone to the brink of death and back and who wrote down every sensation they felt along the way. 10 Shot In The ThroatGeorge Orwell The famous author George Orwell was shot in 1937. He was in Spain, fighting in their civil war, when a bullet pierced his throat....

There are those, however, whose names have been forgotten or have faded from memory—even though they led, and in some cases even bled for, their nation or their ideals. 10 Cincinnatus Rome, 458 B.C. Lucius Quinctius retired from politics at an old age—he had previously served as a Roman Consul. In 458 B.C., Rome was beset by a threat from nearby tribes. The tribe of the Aequi trapped a Roman army in the mountains; the Aequi and their allies also threatened the city itself....

We are all familiar with the house fly, which feeds on decaying organic matter (among other disgusting things), and is pretty much harmless to other insects. However, there are around 120,000 species of flies in the world (many are yet to be discovered) and some of them are accomplished predators. Robber flies are among these; they have extremely sharp eyesight and can fly at high speed, catching other insects in mid air....

10 Sign Language Has An Accent Some places—like Buffalo and Boston—have such strong regional accents that it’s clear when you’re talking to someone from those cities. But you don’t have to speak to have an accent. They crop up in American Sign Language, too. Philadelphia has one of those instantly recognizable accents, to the point where its “Iggles” football team and other odd pronunciations were explained in an entire article in The Washington Post....

10Hyperloop Picture this: A brilliant billionaire designs an innovative all-electric car, founds a company to resupply the International Space Station, and invents a super-successful alternative banking system. It may sound like the next summer blockbuster, but it’s real life. Elon Musk is the founder of Tesla Motors, SpaceX, and PayPal, and now he’s revolutionizing public transport. He recently unveiled his idea for an ultra-fast, city-to-city transport system that could get you from San Francisco to Los Angeles in just 35 minutes....

A monumental and popular piece of classical music, the 1812 Overture is perfectly suited for the Proms. The piece was written by Tchaikovsky in 1880, who planned its performance minutely. However, various events occurred which mean it is entirely possible that Tchaikovsky never heard the work as he wrote it. The piece commemorates the French invasion, and Russian repulsion of Napoleon, of 1812. The work includes a portion of La Marseillaise to represent the French, only to drown it with the famous cannon shots later....

It was almost as if people didn’t want to go home. The dining club, however, offered a particular experience. Good food, sophisticated conversation, brandy, cigars, and, most of all, discretion. But some clubs went further. They sought to combine intellectual interests with food. As their members had wide-ranging and sometimes downright peculiar interests, the combination didn’t always work. 10 Ichthyophagous Club The Ichthyophagous Club was one of the more unusual dining clubs in New York....

Some of the most proficient serial killers in history have been doctors or nurses. To people like Harold Shipman and Michael Swango, hospitals were just a way of gaining easy access to unsuspecting, trusting victims. Going back in time a century or two, we see that the medical profession had its fair share of depravity and murder even then. 10 The Brighton Murder In June 1866, Dr. Alfred William Warder and his wife, Helen, checked into the Bedford Hotel in Brighton....

History is filled with cases that would stump even Sherlock Holmes. Often, this isn’t because they were the works of criminal masterminds but because there were almost no clues to go on. As of now, these ten murders remain mysteries, and the more time passes, the less likely they are to ever be solved. 10 The Skeleton In The Cellar The Lost Towns Project is an ongoing archaeological enterprise to rediscover and excavate lost settlements from colonial Maryland....

10Bairnsdale Ulcer Bairnsdale ulcer is terrorizing Australia. It begins as a mosquito bite and soon spreads to gaping wounds that devour flesh, fat, tendons, nerves, and even bone. Epidemiologists believe it spreads to humans via mosquitoes on possums. They are uncertain whether the possums are the cause or just another victim. The disease incubates slowly, often emerging four months after the initial bite. The elbow, back, calf, and ankle are the most common areas targeted....

10 “The Story of a Mother” Hans Christian Andersen The idea of losing a child to an illness can be terrifying to any parent. Especially when medical care set in Andersen’s time can’t compare to modern amenities. This story chronicles the heartbreaking journey a mother must go through as her child wastes away from sickness. She confronts the physical manifestation of Death, the Grim Reaper himself. However, no one can stop the natural cycle of life and death, no matter how much they truly want to....

Caterpillars of skipper butterflies, which live on the maguey cactus, are toasted or fried and eaten with mescal. Since the maguey is the source of pulque and tequila, ‘caterpillar pretzels’ are a favorite in Mexico, even available canned. Marinate larvae, sliced onions and lime leaves in coconut cream with some pepper. Wrap in pieces of linen and steam; serve over rice. Collect ants in leaf cups, put directly into the hot ashes of a fire for just a few minutes....

One of the better know facts about the deceased former leader of North Korea, Kim was reportedly so afraid of flying that the only way he would travel about the country was through 6 custom made armored trains, with around 20 different stations built specifically for him. Each train was lavishly built, with conference rooms, bedrooms, flat screen TVs, satellite phone links, and much more. He also reportedly had live lobster and cognac airlifted to the train every day, which he ate with silver chopsticks....

In the end, however, anarchism has failed to gain traction as a widespread movement in the modern world, even after the attempts made by the following 10 anarchist societies. 10 Revolutionary Catalonia As a result of the Spanish coup in July 1936 when the Fascists were trying to gain control of Spain, the Confederacion Nacional del Trabajo–Federacion Anarquista Iberica (CNT-FAI), an anarchist party within Catalonia, led a popular uprising by organizing militias against the Nationalist forces....

To quote American historian Will Durant: “Education is a progressive discovery of our own ignorance.”[1] Having said that, here are ten interesting but discredited theories. 10 Bode’s Law Otherwise known as the Titius-Bode law, this particular hypothesis was used to predict the spacing between the planets in our solar system. (It’s basically a simple numerical formula.) German astronomer Johann Daniel Titius was the first to create the empirical rule, which seemed to reliably predict the distances of each planet from the Sun....

The hottest man-made temperature ever recorded is 7.2 trillion degrees fahrenheit, or about four billion degrees celsius. Since we hope to minimize the use of superlatives in this list, let’s just say: that’s pretty hot. In fact, it’s about 250,000 times hotter than the temperature at the core of the sun. The extreme recording was made at the Brookhaven Natural Laboratory in New York, in their 2.4-mile-long Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider....