The first spam email was sent not by a money-hungry opportunist posing as exiled Nigerian royalty, but by a Digital Equipment Corporation marketing employee looking to spread the word about his company’s products. It hit the inboxes of a number … Continue reading →

Even lexicographers make mistakes. An editor at Merriam-Webster discovered a big one Feb. 28, 1939 when he realized the word “dord,” which had been included in the second edition of Webster’s New International Dictionary, didn’t have an etymology. A bit … Continue reading →

On March 3, 1931, President Herbert Hoover signed a congressional resolution that made Maryland resident Francis Scott Key’s “The Star-Spangled Banner” the official national anthem of the United States of America. It is relatively common knowledge that the anthem’s lyrics … Continue reading →

The most valuable American autograph doesn’t belong to a pop star or a sports hero, but to Button Gwinnett, one of Georgia’s representatives to the Continental Congress and the second signer of the Declaration of Independence. This is due mainly … Continue reading →

Here at Daily TWiP, we are overjoyed to celebrate the most exciting confluence of holidays since the International Day of Awesomeness and Chuck Norris’ birthday. Today (May 25) is both Towel Day and Geek Pride Day. Towel Day was instituted … Continue reading →

Believe it or not, ice cream sodas were once considered a sinful indulgence, and not just because of the calories. Today (June 30) on National Ice Cream Soda Day, we celebrate this soda fountain favorite that was initially believed to … Continue reading →

Some academics are remembered for making great contributions to their fields of study or for their impressive oratorical style. The Rev. William Archibald Spooner, on the other hand, is remembered for wuddling his mords. Born today (July 22) in 1844, … Continue reading →

Today (Aug. 13), we would like to remind you that there are two ways to do things – not a right way and a wrong way, but a right way and a left way. On International Left-Handers’ Day, we celebrate … Continue reading →

Declaring independence is apparently contagious. Not long after the Revolutionary War officially ended in 1783, part of North Carolina decided it wanted to be independent from the rest of the state. Made up of what was then the westernmost portion … Continue reading →

You’d think that since pi is by definition a mathematical constant, it would be left alone to go about its business of representing the value of the ratio of a circle’s circumference to its diameter. Today (Feb. 5) in 1897, … Continue reading →