Leonardo was born on 14/15 April 1452 at a farmhouse outside the hamlet of Anchiano in Tuscany, the son of Ser Piero, a rich Florentine notary, and Caterina, an unmarried peasant woman. They had 12 other children with other partners, but Leonardo was their sole kid together. Because of his illegitimacy, he was not expected to follow in his father's footsteps and become a notary. He was instead free to pursue his own interests and enter the creative arts.

Kalibangan in Rajasthan is one of the most important sites of the Indus Valley Civilization, which existed for around 450-600 years. This location has provided evidence of the first plowed agricultural field. This site also revealed evidence of the first known earthquake (2600 BC), which might have been the cause of the civilization's demise. The discovery of fire altars at the site suggested that the inhabitants worshipped fire. A visit to this location will give you an idea of how the ancient people lived with limited resources. You may take a train to Bikaner because it is the nearest railway station, around 205 kilometers away from Kalibangan.

Though now famous as the piano player at Rick's Café Américain, Dooley Wilson, the actor who played Sam, was an experienced musician and bandleader—but not a piano player. He was a drummer and mimed the piano playing. "As Time Goes By" was dubbed in later.

For individuals who fantasize of being buried at sea, Eternal Reefs has devised a novel option. It combines a person's cremated bones with concrete to form a "pearl" onto which loved ones can engrave personal messages, handprints, or memories. The pearl is then wrapped in a "reef ball" and put into the water, where it creates a new habitat for fish and other sea creatures, promoting a healthy environment.

Ashton Kutcher has syndactyly, sometimes known as webbed toes. In 2008, the actor displayed his linked numbers on a British chat program. "Something has to give when everything else is this good-looking," he joked.

Switzerland has one of the highest rates of gun ownership among developed nations. However, this does not always imply an increase in crime; Switzerland has about half the number of gun-related deaths as the United States. Switzerland has one of the lowest crime rates among all developed nations.

Someone born on April 20, 1889, was predicted to rise to power by an astrologer. Adolf Hitler was that "someone." Karl Krafft, a Swiss astrologer, predicted an attempted assassination of Hitler. Krafft was imprisoned by the Nazis for foreseeing the unfortunate event. When it became clear that the astrologer was not guilty, Goebbels, the Nazis' Minister of Propaganda, hired Krafft as their in-house astrologer. "It was Krafft's astrological forecasts that led Hitler to begin the successful Operation Barossa attack," according to AstrologyCosmos.

You are not required to write about your deepest fears or your most ardent crushes, as you did in middle school. Rather, keep track of when your migraines occur. Take note of when they began, what you were doing, what you ate and drank in the previous 24 hours, and your menstrual cycle, if you're a woman. This can assist you in determining your migraine triggers.

During Japanese rule it became the wealthy, modernized country it is today. There are plenty of places you can visit Japanese hill towns, tea houses, and hot springs used by the colonial rulers. While these places are quaint and charming, historians tell us that the Japanese were cruel rulers and forced local women to be their concubines.

Few visitors to Budapest are aware of the little church on the rock beneath Gellert Hill in Budapest Old Town. Despite being surrounded by so many grandiose churches, Sziklatemplom ('Rock Church') is relatively unknown. If you happen to be near the Liberty Bridge (the green metal one), you can visit this strange chapel founded in 1926 by a group of Pauline monks. The Cave Church (which is still in use) is not spectacular, but it is charming in its own right. Off the beaten path, but worth a 30-minute detour.

One of my favorite historic Quebec City facts is that Old Quebec is encircled by defensive city walls that were listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1985.

Although it's rarely used, the phrase's full form is "as joyful as a clam at high water." The full meaning of the idiom is clearer because clams are normally safe from predators during high tide.

A common, but the lesser-known side effect of anxiety is anger. When we feel powerless over a situation, or our life is out of our control, expressing anger is a natural way to feel a sense of control.
It’s much easier to externalize the conflict rather than acknowledge the real issue and deal with it. Additionally, with chronic sufferers of anxiety, depression sometimes develops.

The national football team of Qatar automatically qualified for the 2022 World Cup as the host nation. They are participating in the FIFA World Cup for the first time. However, they were defeated by Ecuador in their opening game.

If you're curious about the origins of the word "cake," it comes from the Middle English word "Kake." This term was used in the Middle Ages to describe a flat and round bread that was baked on both sides. It sounds a lot like the cakes we have here. It is also closely related to other words like pastry or tarts. Not only are they similar in words, but they are also similar in other ways.

Shinto gods range from ancestors of the family, the locality, persons who died tragically or accomplished great things for the world, ancient gods from ancient books, nature itself, the weather, topography, and so on. Shintoism has so many gods that there is a term in Japanese called "Yaoyorozu no Kami." Yaoyorozu translates to "eight million."

They eat worms, insect larvae, small crustaceans, larval fish, and other invertebrates. They use their stinging cells to stun, entangle, or kill their prey before eating it. Some species of Hydra have even been known to sting fish to death.

Water and light are the two things that iguanas are most terrified of. They are afraid when they are splashed with water because of the sound it produces. And when they see a light shining on them, they feel afraid and flee.

Because cricket is a noncontact activity, injuries and deaths are exceedingly uncommon when compared to motorsports and boxing, among other sports. Despite this, there have been tragic incidents. Jasper Vinall of England was the first cricketer to die in 1624. His life was cruelly cut short two weeks later. Wilf Slack, a British cricketer, died in 1989 while playing in the Gambia.

The renowned whirling photo of Neo's gravity-defying backbend was created using 120 separate digital still cameras and two film cameras. Frame by frame, the static photos were blended together to produce the scene. The first Bullet Time test shot provided an almost 360-degree image of an exploding garbage can.

Books are an interesting market in part because they offer a 100% return policy. So, if a publisher sells 50 copies of a fresh new book to, say, Target or a local independent bookshop, that company has the option of returning all 50 copies to the publishing house if they don't sell. Isn't that crazy? 50 copies aren't much, but when you get into the hundreds, you can see how this can be a difficult market to predict.

Saint Marinus established the monastery on September 3, 301 CE. For a long period, the city-state has retained its independence and has survived several crises, including barbarian invasions, the Napoleonic Wars, and the Italian Reunification.

Go into any Starbucks, and you'll probably see two kinds of tables: round tables and rectangular tables. There's a reason for the round tables. According to Reader's Digest, the round tables are supposed to make you feel more at home when you're by yourself. 

 

History was made on 1 April 2001 when the Netherlands became the world’s first country to legalize same-sex marriage. Job Cohen, the mayor of Amsterdam at the time, married four couples at midnight on 1 April to mark the occasion. Many same-sex couples have since happily tied the knot. 

Amsterdam is also known for being one of the world’s most LGBTQ-friendly cities, with plenty of gay bars. You can also see the Homomonument in the city centre, a tribute to gay men and women.