Montana-class battleship — On August 8th, 1940, the Japanese launched the largest battleship in human history. The Yamato garnered attention from naval observers around the world as the monster ship slid into the pages of history. At the time, most naval officers believed that the next great naval war would be fought —…

They’ve drained their rivers, and now they want to drain yours. — The western United States continues to languish under a historic drought which has led some people to propose outlandish solutions to the growing problem. One such solution is for a system of pipes and pumps to be built linking the Mississippi and Colorado river basins. The theoretical design would have…

Don’t expect regular people to pick up your extremist causes — America seems obsessed with igniting a second civil war. The media continues to give breathless coverage to extremist keyboard warriors who spend their days typing furiously about how it is time for Americans to once again take up arms against one another. The idea seems to be tantalizing to many…

Information from the bottom of the sea — The leading theory regarding the extinction of the dinosaurs (and much life on Earth) revolves around a single massive asteroid strike. The asteroid in question struck the Earth roughly 66 million years ago and left a 100-mile wide crater off of the Yucatan Peninsula. The asteroid would have vaporized nearly…

The disaster at Clark Field and how MacArthur escaped with his job — The attacks on Pearl Harbor that unfolded on December 7th were a catastrophe for the US military. The suddenness of the attack, the complete surprise attained by the Japanese, and the material damage wrought spawned a series of investigations and inquiries. Heads rolled. Many were stunned and outraged that such…

The Brusilov Offensive by the numbers — On June 4th, 1916, a massive artillery barrage split the calmness of the morning. Thousands of guns opened up along a massive front, heralding the opening of the Great War’s largest offensive. The Imperial Russian Army mobilized 1.5 million troops to punch through the Austro-Hungarian lines and capture the cities…

A 200 year decline that began with a crusade — Like the fall of Rome, the fall of Constantinople was hundreds of years in the making. By the time the Ottoman Turks tore down the walls of the great city, the Eastern Roman Empire had been sundered into multiple parts and had been reduced to little more than a city-state…

Some people thought so — Death was a common theme in the American Civil War, but it was not always apparent why. During and after the carnage of battle, surgeons got quite good at amputating wounded limbs. An experienced surgeon could amputate an arm in five minutes. These surgeons would lop off limbs all day…

A myth from one of humanity’s greatest tragedies — The destruction of Baghdad at the hands of the Mongols in 1258 CE is one of the darkest days in human history. The sack of Baghdad should rank alongside the burning of the library at Alexandria, the fall of Rome, and the conquest of Constantinople. The year 1258 should be…