If you cut an onion near a gas stove with a lit burner, it’ll help prevent your eyes from tearing up.

The Galápagos Islands are one of only two locales inhabited by giant tortoises, along with the Indian Ocean’s Aldabra Atoll.

In Japan, Shinto shrines are rebuilt every 20 years with entirely new wood. The continuity over the centuries is spiritual and comes from the source of the wood. In the case of the Ise Jingu’s Naiku shrine, it has currently been rebuilt 62 times.

Colored Pyrex mixing bowls hit the scene in 1940, while Cinderella bowls – which had spouts on either end – hit the shelves in 1957.

Alfred Hitchcock once attended a party dressed in drag. Rumor has it there was movie footage shot of the event, but after his death, his office was cleaned out and the footage was never found after that.

This article appears in January 8 • 2016.

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