Frequent fliers hear it time and time again. Their captains welcome them aboard “our beautiful Boeing 747 to (insert destination),” or some variation of this. A child may ask a parent, “What does ‘Boeing’ mean?” and a likely response is that it’s the name of the type of commercial jet they’re on. In fact, the plane ...

Remember reading Moby-Dick, Herman Melville’s tale of a devil of a whale versus Ahab, the captain of Pequod? Ahab sought revenge on the white whale, which had destroyed his previous ship and severed the captain’s leg at the knee. Well, that great American novel is based on events that actually happened back in early nineteenth century whaling days, which are ...

Do you know your knots? When it comes to rope skills—even standard tasks like tying a kayak to the car, suspending a tarp above your campsite, or just joining two ropes together—your chain is only as strong as your weakest link…er, your rope is only as secure as your knot. Thanks to the wisdom-packed, sustainable-living-focused, ...