Author: Ms. R.

At 260 feet tall and over 1600 feet long, the Abraumförderbrücke (overburden conveyer bridge) F60 is the largest vehicle ever constructed by size. Its length is over 1.5 times the height of the Eiffel Tower, and has been appropriately nicknamed the “lying Eiffel Tower.” Between 1969 and 1991, five such conveyer bridges were built by East German state-run combine TAKRAF for lignite mines in the Lusatia coalfields. A conveyer bridge serves to remove the upper levels of earth, known as……

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The Corbeille of Nefta (La Corbeille de Nefta) is a unique natural and historical site located in the oasis town of Nefta in southern Tunisia, near the Algerian border. Known for its stunning beauty, the natural springs here water nearly half a million date palms, one of the largest collections of the trees in the world, as well as ancient irrigation channels, which have sustained the local population for centuries. The name “Corbeille,” which means “basket” in French, refers……

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One rural Romanian village’s main street is filled with unexpectedly opulent and luxurious homes. The Roma, a people of Northern Indian origin who are not to be confused with Ethnic Romanians, inhabit many of these houses in Buzescu. While Roma are often associated with a nomadic lifestyle, many were enslaved by the Crown centuries ago. After slavery was abolished in Romania in the mid-19th century, some Roma remained in the country to make a living as metal smiths. Such……

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Located within the Cajas National Park, the alpine lake of Llaviucu Lagoon is accessible via a tranquil day hike through an area home to an alpaca herd, an abandoned brewery, and a serene natural ecosystem rife with life. In the 1970s and 1980s, Llaviucu Lagoon was an experimental site where rainbow trout were introduced and some of the first farms were installed in the region. Near the lagoon is the now-abandoned Azuay Brewery, an old brick house that was……

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AO Wants to Know is an ongoing interview series where we ask experts in extraordinary subjects to share their knowledge with us. The inability to notice plants as living parts of the environment is an unfortunately common state of mind that botanists call “plant blindness.” “People just see plants as green,” says plant toxicologist Liz Dauncey. In their minds, plants “don’t do anything. They just sit around. They’re boring.” Dauncey considers part of her work to be “chipping away……

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Cotonou’s towering 100-foot (30-meter) Amazon statue is a tribute to the legendary all-female warriors of Dahomey, a former West African kingdom now part of southern Benin.  These women, celebrated by some as fierce defenders and condemned by others as brutal raiders, formed an all-female army from the 17th century until the late 19th century. From elephant hunters to battle-hardened soldiers, their origins remain shrouded in myth, but their impact is undeniable. Under Queen Tassi Hangbe’s leadership in the 18th……

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“Bergen train robbed in the night!” The newspaper headline was dramatic, and the story equally so: As travelers in jubilant vacation moods were enjoying their journey across the mountains, a group of students descended on the train and robbed it, before making their getaway on skis. The paper was inundated with calls from people who’d missed a small but vital little box, stating, “Price: 2 kroner, Gyldendal.” It was an ad for a book from a major publisher. The……

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Assistens Cemetery in Copenhagen is best known as the final resting place of notable Danes, including storyteller Hans Christian Andersen and physicist Niels Bohr. But tucked among traditional graves—blending seamlessly with its surroundings—is a much stranger marker that might easily go unnoticed at first glance. Upon closer inspection, the weathered white marble plaque reveals an enigmatic inscription: “Andreas Morgenrødt, Tidsrejsende (Time Traveller), 1996–2064.” Since time travel to the future—and back—has yet to be achieved, what’s the story? A typo?……

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