The Peculiar Truth about Pythagoras’ Weird Life
Even those of us with no proficiency at mathematics have probably heard of the Pythagorean theorum. It’s a fundamental geometry formula involving right triangles, and the man who conceived it was an Ancient Greek polymath named Pythagoras. He lived from 570 to 495 BC. He was an early adopter of the belief that earth is round, and he identified Venus as the evening star. He also conceived of the music of the spheres, the theory that the planets produce music that humans cannot
May 263 min read
The Peculiar Truth about Lindbergh’s Dark Side
Charles Lindbergh was an American hero. In 1927, he gained fame as the first pilot to fly solo and nonstop across the Atlantic. Ticker tape parades were given in his honor. Then in 1932, he and his wife suffered the widely publicized kidnapping and murder of their child, which was called the crime of the century. In 1935, Lindbergh and his wife Anne left their native United States to live in the English countryside. They relocated to an island off France, and Lindbergh spent
May 193 min read
The Peculiar Truth about the Gay Miss America
Dr. Deidre Downs is an inspiring woman. At just 45 years of age as of this writing, she has an impressive list of accomplishments. After being selected as Miss Alabama 2004, she entered the Miss America contest the following year. In 2005 at age 25, she received the national crown in Atlantic City. Prior to that, though, she attended high school in Pelham, Alabama, a suburb of Birmingham. She won her high school’s beauty pageant as a senior. Upon graduation, Miss Downs receiv
May 123 min read
The Peculiar Truth about the Pulitzer Author’s Mother
In 1981, John Kennedy Toole’s first novel was released. One year later, A Confederacy of Dunces won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. Toole personally didn’t receive the award, however. His mother, Thelma Toole, accepted on his behalf. He had tried to find a publisher for years with no success. His mother managed that feat for him, too. Aside from writing the manuscript - the main feat, of course - John Kennedy Toole had no input regarding the publication of A Confederacy of Du
May 53 min read