Almanac
Phil Edwards explains the world through its footnotes. Read more below or watch Almanac on Vox’s YouTube channel.
The origins of the holiday’s non-religious traditions
Say goodbye to your productivity.
The floor of his studio was maintained for decades. And it looked exactly how you’d expect.
He managed to package a sense of humor, and it became a phenomenon.
These pictures show the Eiffel Tower being created — despite the fact that some French elites hated it.
This is how emergency warnings moved from signs to the cloud.
This mesmerizing explosion is perfect.
Billy the Kid, Wild Bill Hickok, and Annie Oakley all had amazing nicknames. This is how they got them.
Every day, Tube riders stream in and out. This is what that looks like.
Do you know why PDX, MSY, and PEK have their airport codes? This beautiful site reveals the answer.
A truly terrifying medical condition.
There’s one big thing wrong with video phones, and people have known about it for 100 years.
Underrated: Border Terriers. Overrated: Bulldogs.
The 27 Club is a lie.
The 1916 convention featured preaching from a former slave of Robert E. Lee (also named Robert E. Lee).
Since 1979, Dick Vitale has been talking on television. And almost nothing can stop him.
Anna Atkins made history with algae. This is how.
There is an unmistakable geography to beer preferences in America.
“Oh, if I could only have a piece of mince pie!”
There are plenty of dancing supercuts out there, but this is one of the best.
The literary community seemingly can’t go five years without someone notable declaring the novel dead.
We ranked politicians based on their puppet comfort level. How will it change puppet policy?
Here’s why some people are tweeting that they can’t handle looking at the cluster of circles on the watchface.
A trip that used to take weeks takes less than a day. These maps that show the progress.
Can Los Angeles fix all your problems? This Minnesota man’s tale is a warning to us all.
Exploit human psychology. Dominate your opponents.
Felix and Oscar are an odd couple, but they’re also a clear success. The debut Playbill shows why.
The Apple Watch is impressive. But in at least one way, Marie Antoinette’s watch was better.
One man cracked his knuckles in one hand for 60 years and not the other. Watch the video to see what he found out.
There’s a handful of possible causes.
Can you imagine Dorian Gray gingerly tossing himself to the divan?
406 actors are closer to the center of Hollywood than Kevin Bacon. Find out who they are.
Setting records is hard, and making money from it is even harder. But Guinness has a strategy in place.
Beep-beep!
He changed maps forever, but in the 1500s, that could be a dangerous thing. This is how.
Would wrapping a rubber tube around pilots’ bodies keep them safe? At least one inventor thought so.
Did Dormie do it? The canine trial of the decade focused on the eternal battle between cats and dogs.
Finally, someone made a statistical map of Daily Doubles
One state tops the list of steps taken per day in both winter and summer.
Think Frank and Claire Underwood have a weird relationship? These real historical marriages would make them blush.