Lists and Stories

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  6 Classical Dances of India Dance is an ancient and celebrated cultural tradition in India. Folk dances abound all across the country, and huge crowds of people can be found dancing at festivals and weddings. Dance and song features heavily in Indian cinema (so-called “Bollywood” films), too. But where does Indian dance draw...
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  6 Common Infections We Wish Never Existed We all miss a day of school or work here and there thanks to a cold or a sore throat. But those maladies have nothing against the ones presented in this list—six afflictions that many of us have come to know all too well. And if by some miracle of hygiene you’ve somehow managed to escape the...
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  6 Cultures That Recognize More than Two Genders Throughout history, many cultures have recognized gender identities other than male and female. Nonbinary people have often occupied unique positions in their societies, serving as priests, artists, and ceremonial leaders. Here are some nonbinary genders recognized by cultures around the world....
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  6 Domestic Animals and Their Wild Ancestors The domestication of wild animals, beginning with the dog, heavily influenced human evolution. These creatures, and the protection, sustenance, clothing, and labor they supplied, were key factors that allowed our nomadic ancestors to form permanent settlements. Though to many urbanites livestock...
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  6 Famous Paintings to See at the Buffalo AKG Art Museum The Buffalo AKG Art Museum, which was founded in 1862 as the Buffalo Fine Arts Academy and was later called the Albright-Knox Art Gallery, is known for its collection of modern and contemporary art. Here are six notable paintings in its collection. Earlier versions of the descriptions of these...
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  6 Fast Facts about Alexander Graham Bell Alexander Graham Bell, best known as the inventor of the telephone, also made other significant contributions to society during his extraordinary life. He created other useful tools and devices, he made a lifelong commitment to deaf education, and he helped fund some of the most influential...
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  6 Fictional Languages You Can Really Learn Many of the languages that are made up for television and books are just gibberish. However, a rare few have been developed into fully functioning living languages, some even by linguistic professionals and professors. If learning French and Spanish at school wasn’t quite your cup of tea, you may...
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  6 Important Mughal Emperors At its height, a period extending from the middle of the 16th century to the beginning of the 18th, the Mughal Empire controlled almost the entire Indian subcontinent, marshaling vast amounts of money and manpower. The best-known members of the Mughal dynasty are its first emperors—Babur and five...
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  6 Ingenious Escapes Individuals often find themselves in circumstances that…well, they’d rather not be in. Here are six ingenious escapes throughout history. list, escapes, breakouts, jailbreak, prison break, Alcatraz, Tower of London, Dalai Lama, El Chapo, Berlin Wall For much of England’s history, the Tower of...
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  6 Interesting Facts About Barbie She is arguably the world’s most popular doll. In fact, more than 100 are sold every minute. But how much do you know about Barbara Millicent Roberts? (And yes, that’s Barbie’s full name.) Read on for some fascinating facts about the iconic toy. list, Barbie, Mattel, Ken, Ruth Handler, Jack Ryan,...
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  6 Interesting Facts About Fidel Castro Fidel Castro, the father of the Cuban Revolution, ruled his country for 47 years, from 1959 to 2006. For comparison, during that same period, 10 men served as the president of the United States: Dwight Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson, Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, Ronald...
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  Swashbuckling Sisters: 6 Lady Pirates You’ve heard of Blackbeard and Redbeard and Bluebeard, but what about the beardless buccaneers? While women pirates weren’t exactly a dime a dozen even during the height of piracy, there were a surprising number of fearless females who plied the seven seas. list, encyclopedia, britannica,...
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  6 Lost Civilizations Throughout the course of human history, great civilizations have been built, thrived, and declined. Many of these have been well documented by historians, and later civilizations have been able to track their rise and fall. But some seem to have suddenly disappeared. Some civilizations left clues...
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  6 Notable Paintings at the National Gallery of Victoria in Melbourne The National Gallery of Victoria, which was founded in 1861, houses its collection in two spaces in Melbourne: NGV Australia and NGV International, the nams of which signal the works to be found there. The museum holds more than 70,000 artworks and provides a sweeping view of the history of art...
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  6 Oddly Named U.S. Government Operations Whoever comes up with these names deserves a raise or maybe just needs a nap. list, covert, United States, CIA, operations, odd names, U.S. history, military Operation Paul Bunyan—also known as that time the U.S. military deployed helicopters to cut down a tree—commenced in 1976 after the murders...
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  6 of the First Women to Become Heads of State Throughout history, women have often been pushed to the sidelines in politics and kept from power. As of 2016, only 44 of the 196 countries in the world had ever had a woman as head of state. From earning the right to vote in democracies to holding office and becoming national leaders, women have...
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  12 of the World’s Deadliest Natural Disasters When a natural disaster such as a tropical cyclone or an earthquake strikes, it often brings with it additional calamities such as floods, tsunamis, and disease, causing the death toll, damage to property, and economic loss to spiral. These 12 natural disasters destroyed cities and wiped out...
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  6 of the World’s Most Dangerous Birds In 1963 Alfred Hitchcock released The Birds, one of his most iconic thrillers. The movie considered what would happen if flocks of birds, animals that linger in the background of many of our daily lives, suddenly rose up and attacked a small coastal town in California. The film was inspired by a...
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  6 Paintings to See in St. Petersburg, Russia The artists who created these paintings hail from Venice, the Netherlands, Paris, and other countries around the world, but today you can find their work in St. Petersburg, Russia. Even if you aren’t planning a trip, you can learn more about these incredible paintings right here. Earlier versions...
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  6 Paintings to Visit at the Pinacoteca di Brera The Pinacoteca di Brera was founded in Milan in 1809, and it grew to become one of the largest art galleries in Italy. Its collection includes artworks that reach from 4000 BCE through the 20th century. This list includes just six of its notable paintings. Earlier versions of the descriptions of...