Latest Stories

Most recently published stories in FYI.

Koschei & His Secret Soul
In discussions and popular conversations on folklore and myth you rarely hear his name. Sidelined by Grimm tales and Greek Gods, not favored as well as the Norse, lie the Slavic folktales. Hiding in the shadows of the old world, in deep forests and decrepit castles, they are ancient monsters beings of unspeakable machinations. Forest spirits and mountain gods. The likes of Baba Yaga, Firebird, Leshy, and Chernobog come from these lands. While you may have heard those names, you are probably not as familiar with Koschei the Deathless.
By Lucy Richardson5 years ago in FYI
The Two Books That Eerily Predicted The Sinking of The Titanic
According to Statista, at least 6 out of 10 people find it hard to believe in psychic abilities and the unknown. Majority of the time, any strange or eerie occurrence is dismissed as coincidence and there’s still no scientific fact to corroborate phenomenons like ghosts or the ability to speak to them. Neither is there any non-falsified scientific evidence that can predict your future accurately. Nor is there any technology that can take you back in time. But the famous case of the Titanic is so peculiar, that it comes as close to the proof of clairvoyance and the ability to predict the future as we might ever get.
By Damilola5 years ago in FYI
How to Make a Myth: Captain Kirk Didn’t Invent the Mobile Phone, but Dick Tracy Did
‘Martin Cooper can recall the moment when he was at a break in his lab watching the episode of Star Trek when Kirk used his Communicator to call for help for an injured Spock, which later inspired him to invent the mobile phone.’ Forbes
By Miranda Weindling5 years ago in FYI
Did You Know?
A seahorse seems impossible. It seems unlikely to really be real. Like a unicorn, fairy or dragon, the seahorse has been so legendary, and throughout time in cultures across the globe, have inspired so many incredible medical remedies, art, literature and myths, that it seems too hard to believe that a seahorse lives, day in and day out, right alongside every other normal thing on the planet. Yet, although the seahorse seems like the embodiment of obscurity, magical and mysterious in its underwater existence, it is as real as you and I.
By Tess Celinalaha 5 years ago in FYI
Murder
The sky is covered with black specks flying in circles. Crows! Lots of them. Normally a large group of certain animals are named differently. A herd of cattle, a flock of sheep, but in this case, it is called a “murder of crows” or an “unkindness of crows”. Media, different cultures, and literature sometimes paint these creatures to symbolize death.
By Vinnie Quan5 years ago in FYI
That time a bear joined the Polish Army
Wars bring about loss, sadness, and chaos. During times of war, people naturally look for ways to lift their spirits—this was especially true during the dark days of World War II. A little-known Polish Army unit found hope in a comrade named Wojtek. This remarkable trooper made life-long connections with the soldiers he served alongside, and now his name carries so much fame, more than one movie has been made about his life. Wojtek, however, was unlike any other solider in the war: he was a 500-pound Syrian Black Bear.
By Ed Wilson5 years ago in FYI
Is color in the eye of the beholder?
If a tree falls in the forest and no one sees it, is it still brown and green? In principle, color is primarily determined by a property of light, wavelength, that has little to do with hikers passing by… Or has it? On the one hand, it is true that physical properties of light are independent of beholders (as long as we don’t go into the weird world of quantum physics) but, on the other, a wavelength is not a color. A wavelength only becomes a color once a creature with the right kit to detect it puts it in a mental box different from the mental box for some other detectable wavelength. That’s where things get interesting.
By Ines Anton-Mendez5 years ago in FYI
Historic Long Island
Montauk. The Hamptons. Even casual consumers of pop culture are familiar with these iconic Long Island locales. Film fans will recall passing references in blockbuster movies like Jaws as well as important scenes in Something's Gotta Give and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. Sitcom audiences will remember celebrated episodes of Seinfeld and Friends. Those who prefer their TV soapy and dramatic may be more familiar with Revenge and The Affair. Celebrity watchers know that actors, musicians, athletes, and media personalities including Robert Downey Jr., Gwyneth Paltrow, Beyonce, Paul Simon, Eli Manning, and Martha Stewart are frequent visitors and part-time residents of towns in the area.
By Sean Johnson5 years ago in FYI
Little Known London: Exhibition Road
Exhibition Road is known as a place for tourists and locals alike to enjoy the history and culture of London. But how did this road and these beautiful buildings come to be such a cultural hub?
By Alicia Jake5 years ago in FYI
America's Bloodiest Conflict
Many people believe that the Civil War was a conflict over slavery. That was a large piece of the puzzle, but it was not the whole story. It was also a war about autonomy and representation. President Abraham Lincoln wrote,
By Ted Lacksonen5 years ago in FYI
Bury Me Then Plant a Tree
Within the Philippines, deep in South Sulawesi, there is a grove of Tarra trees that have strange little patch marks going up and down their trunks. They look like a roof thatching carved into the side of the tree. Behind those patches is a morbid tradition that I find fascinating, disturbing, and beautiful all at once. This is something I discovered by accident and yet I cannot unlearn now that I know it. I am debating if I will adapt this idea into the novels, because it definitely fits my fantasy world’s religion. My fantasy world is not based on facts though. So here is my obscure truth and how I discovered it.
By Lucy Alice Dickens5 years ago in FYI
Liquid Paper: Not Just Monkee Business
For those who remember typewriters, you also remember liquid paper. Liquid Paper was that small bottle of paint like substance used to correct typos. It wasn’t created by some large company. Rather it was invented out of necessity. This is the story behind it.
By Tabra Lee5 years ago in FYI