MILITARY

Are the flags flying for Memorial Day or Veterans Day? Sometimes, it's tough to say.

What’s the Difference Between Memorial Day and Veterans Day?

Both Memorial Day and Veterans Day are meant to celebrate military veterans, but there's one important distinction you should remember.

35 Celebrities Who Served in the Military

You probably didn’t know about a few of these celebrity veterans who served the red, white, and blue.

9 Famous Figures Who Have Been Awarded Purple Hearts

Kurt Vonnegut and Oliver Stone have something in common: They both earned Purple Hearts. Discover other famous veterans have earned this venerated medal.

You may experience better sleep if you use the military method.

This Military Technique Can Help You Fall Asleep in 2 Minutes

Are you having trouble falling asleep? Try the military method that helped Navy pilots fall asleep in under 120 seconds.

DNA Identifies Medieval Man Thrown Down a Well, Confirming a Norse Saga’s Tale

According to a medieval saga, the Norwegian “Well Man” might have been used as a biological weapon.

You can do something good with unwanted Halloween candy this year.

Cash for Candy Will Pay You for Halloween Leftovers—and Then Send Them to Troops

Even candy corn.

He wants you to learn about the symbol’s history.

Who Was Uncle Sam, and Why Did He ‘Want’ You?

Uncle Sam is an easily recognizable piece of wartime propaganda. And legend says he was based off a real person—though that may not actually be the case.

Three views of the gold Roman-era bracelet discovered in a West Sussex field.

12-Year-Old Boy Stumbles on Ancient Roman Bracelet While Walking His Dog

The rare golden bracelet was probably given to a soldier as a reward for bravery as Roman armies invaded England.

1/72 Testors F19 Secret Stealth Fighter unboxing and review LIVE!

The ’80s Toy That Was Considered a Threat to National Security

The F-19 became the bestselling model plane of all time. Some feared it leaked some highly classified military secrets.

Who Was General Tso, and What Does He Have to Do with Chicken?

The most popular Chinese takeout dish in the U.S. is a sweet, spicy, saucy chicken entree named after a famous Hunanese general who actually preferred pork.

'All our military secrets are on these. Hey, aren't there supposed to be 10?'

The German Navy Is Finally Phasing Out Floppy Disks

A fleet of warships is still running on 8-inch floppy disk power.

Theodore Roosevelt was all about Big Stick Diplomacy.

When Theodore Roosevelt Urged Americans to “Speak Softly and Carry a Big Stick”

Roosevelt launched one of his most famous sayings at the Minnesota State Fair in September 1901—just two weeks before he became president.

Judy Garland, Ray Bolger, Jack Haley, Bert Lahr, and Frank Morgan promoting 'The Wizard of Oz'

How ‘Friend of Dorothy’ Became Code in the Gay Community

In the 1980s, the U.S. Navy carried out a futile search for the “real” Dorothy.

An illustration of the assassination of Franz Ferdinand (1863-1914), Archduke of Austria, and his wife Sophie, in Sarajevo, Bosnia, on June 28, 1914.

Murder in Sarajevo: How the Death of Archduke Franz Ferdinand Lit the Fuse of World War I

The First World War was an unprecedented catastrophe that shaped our modern world. The assassination of an Austrian duke on June 28, 1914, put the events in motion.

When George Washington Nearly Kidnapped a British Prince

During the Revolutionary War, George Washington approved a plan to kidnap Prince William Henry, a son of King George III.

American troops helping their injured friends from a dinghy after the landing ship they were on was hit by enemy fire during the Allied invasion of France on D-Day

Watch Vintage Newsreel Footage of the D-Day Landings in Normandy

This 80-year-old archival footage shows Operation Neptune—the code name for the landings on the beaches at Normandy.

GPS is just one thing in our daily lives originally invented for military use.

9 Everyday Things Originally Invented for the Military

From Jeeps to GPS and jerrycans, the military has fostered inventions that we use every day.

Space has a starting point, but where it begins is still a topic of debate for experts.

Where Does Space Begin?

Some experts believe the Kármán Line is the deciding factor, but others aren't in agreement about where the frontier of space really begins.

This fox is obviously not actually radioactive.

When the U.S. Tried to Win World War II with Radioactive Foxes

Allied officials came up with some strange strategies to win World War II. Operation Fantasia planned to use glow-in-the-dark foxes to spook Japanese forces into defeat.

British Navy landing crafts carry U.S. troops to a ship in Southern England in preparation for D-Day.

The Meteorologists Who Helped Plan D-Day

“Meteorologically, D-Day was bound to be a gamble against the odds.”

An American flying fortress enacts a maneuver against Japanese forces in the Solomon Islands during World War II.

15 Unexpected Military Operation Codenames

Though there’s rarely a (public) explanation of why these weird codenames were assigned, that doesn’t make them any less amusing.

Dwight Eisenhower Wrote a Letter Accepting Blame for D-Day's Failure, Just in Case

D-Day occurred on June 6, 1944, and kicked off the Battle of Normandy. Though it was a success, General Eisenhower was preparing for the worst.

George Washington went by a code name during the Revolutionary War. (And technically, he should be saying, “Hello, my 411 is 711”—411 was the code for “name.”)

12 Historical Code Words and Phrases

Asking a police officer “do you drink?” in the 1970s had nothing to do with grabbing a beer at a nearby bar.

‘Don’t Fire Until Your See the Whites of Their Eyes’ may (or may not) have been uttered at the Battle of Bunker Hill.

‘Don’t Fire Until You See the Whites of Their Eyes’: The Obscure Origin of the Military Command

Legend has it that a heroic American commander at the Battle of Bunker Hill implored his men to hold their fire until their enemies were under their noses. But did the event actually happen?