France’s King Louis XIV was offered biological weapons by an Italian chemist. He not only refused, but also paid the chemist an annual salary to never reveal the technology to anyone else.
21
Leonardo da Vinci could write with one hand and draw with the other at the same time.
56
In Ancient Egypt, some people paid their taxes in honey.
152
Ancient Greeks believed that redheads turned into vampires after they died.
40
The first coast-to-coast telephone line was established in 1914.
33
In 1518, a "dancing plague" struck Strasbourg, Alsace, whereby hundreds of people danced fervently in the streets over the period of a month. Some suffered heart attacks or strokes, and many others died from sheer exhaustion. It remains unexplained.
19
Tickling was a form of torture used in ancient China on nobility because it left no mark and recovery was quick.
33