Fun fact: one of the world’s oldest known monuments, Göbekli Tepe in present-day Turkey, was built around 11,000 years ago — long before agriculture, cities, or writing. We’ve been building monuments almost from the moment we gathered in groups. Why? Because building is more than creating. In asking Why Do We Build Monuments? we dig …
Fun fact: the ancient Egyptians believed that every morning the sun god Ra sailed across the sky in a boat—only to descend through the underworld at night, battling chaos until dawn returned. But that dramatic myth hints at a deeper question: Why did ancient civilizations worship the sun? In this article, we’ll peel back the …
Fun fact: even newborns prefer looking at faces to scrambled shapes—suggesting our brains are wired to recognize meaning, relationships, and narrative almost from birth. But why do humans tell stories? Why did our ancestors gather around fires to pass down tales of hunts, gods, love, loss, or tricksters? The title of this piece—“Why Humans Tell …
Fun fact: The Great Banyan Tree in Kolkata has over 3,600 aerial roots and covers more area than the average football field! There’s something undeniably magnetic about a banyan tree. Maybe it’s the sheer size, the way its roots grow down like ancient pillars, or the quiet sense of presence it exudes. In India, you’ll …
Fun Fact: The Homeric epics like the Iliad and Odyssey were passed down orally for centuries before they were ever written down—yet the stories survived almost word-for-word. Now think about how hard it is for you to remember a phone number without saving it. That contrast right there? That’s the cognitive distance between oral cultures …
Fun Fact: The average person checks their phone about 96 times a day—that’s once every 10 minutes. Picture starting your day with no clue what day it is. Or forgetting your best friend’s birthday. Or walking into a supermarket without a clue what to buy. These things don’t happen anymore—not because our memories have improved, …
Fun Fact: The number zero (0), which seems so ordinary today, was once banned, feared, and even associated with the devil in medieval Europe. Imagine trying to explain your age, count your salary, or measure a cup of rice—without using numbers. Hard to picture, right? Yet, for most of human history, counting was a deeply …
Fun Fact: The first “global” pandemic—the Plague of Justinian—may have hitchhiked its way to Europe through the Silk Road, hidden in the fur of rats aboard caravans. When we think of ancient trade routes, we often imagine camels trudging through deserts loaded with silk, gold, and spices. But trade routes like the Silk Road or …
Fun Fact: The French Revolution introduced a brand-new calendar system that tried to remove all religious influence—including replacing Sunday with a 10-day week! Think a calendar is just a tool to check what day it is? Think again. Behind those neat grids of numbers lies a story of power, belief, rebellion, empire, and sometimes even …
Fun fact: A 2013 study found that physically knocking on wood can actually reduce feelings of anxiety and help people believe they’ve “warded off” bad luck. You say something hopeful—like, “I haven’t been sick all year”—then instinctively reach for the nearest wooden surface and knock on it. It’s almost reflexive, like saying “bless you” after …
