Happy Monday. It's the start of a new week, so we're kicking it off with some amazing stories! Today, dive into the story of how American sourdough was once quite gross, learn about how otters were once as big as lions (yikes), and check out the best demon illustrations of all time!  Come sate your curiosity here. The History of Sourdough Long before it became a viral food trend or social-media sensation, American sourdough was surprisingly gross. Its origins supposedly date back to the Gold Rush of 1849, where miners made bread in their wilderness camps with their own supply of sour, fermented dough. But letters, diaries, and newspaper articles written by and about the 49ers, lumberjacks, and pioneers of the American West are full of complaints about horrible and inedible sourdough. Could bad bread really have inspired San Francisco’s most beloved loaf? READ MORE → Places of the Day Ponyhenge Lincoln, Massachusetts On a small slice of wide-open pasture in the town of Lincoln, Massachusetts, assorted horse toys hold court. Welcome to “Ponyhenge.” READ MORE → The Sinatra House Point Pleasant Beach, New Jersey Outside a beachfront home along the Point Pleasant Beach boardwalk, you may hear the distinctive crooning of Frank Sinatra floating across the boardwalk out to sea. READ MORE → Cosmic Ray Detectors Chicago, Illinois This storage container holds the remains of the “Chicago Egg,” a 2.5-ton, 12-foot tall cosmic ray detectorthat flew on the Space Shuttle Challenger in 1985 as part of the Spacelab 2 (STS-51F) mission. READ MORE → Otters Were Once as Big as Lions Or maybe bears? Enhydriodon omoensis is the largest otter ever found. A new study in the French journal Comptes Rendus Palevol is the first to classify the species, naming it after Ethiopia’s Omo River, where its remains were uncovered. While the study calls the otter “lion-sized,” paleontologist Margaret Lewis of Stockton University in New Jersey, who first analyzed some of the fossils in 2008, thinks “that’s kind of underselling it.” “Bear otter,” she says, is perhaps a better term to encapsulate just how massive these otters were. Okay, grizzly otter it is. Either way. Terrifying. READ MORE → The Best Demon Illustrations The early 19th century occultist writer Jacques Collin de Plancy had a goal: Catalog the demons of the underworld. Like many demonologists before him, de Plancy set out to create an accounting of demonic events and forces in his book, Dictionnaire Infernal. What sets de Plancy’s work apart is his frighteningly surreal illustrations—the devils that make up his occult bestiary are some of the most evocative in the history of demonic literature. READ MORE → The Proto-Oreo When you think of dark sandwich-like cookies with a creamy white center, you probably think of Oreos, in part because Nabisco is so good at marketing. But if you take a look off to the side in the grocery store, you might see one brand in particular that, in fact, was invented four years before Oreos—a cookie brand that looks remarkably similar. That brand would be Hydrox. READ MORE → Penny Dreadfuls and Literacy In the 19th century, penny dreadfuls—serialized installments of stories you could buy for a penny—were all the rage. Millions were fascinated, horrified, and titillated by the grisly tales of murder, crime, and the supernatural, with the occasional romance thrown in for good measure—and no audience was more interested than children and teenagers. As it turns out, the popularity of penny dreadfuls helped to promote literacy, especially among younger readers, at a time when, for many children, formal education was nonexistent or, well, Dickensian. READ MORE → Our Courses and Trips Explore the Human History Behind UFOs How have human beings historically responded to the prospect of alien visitors? In this course led by science historian Greg Eghigian, we’ll get a better sense of how prominent theories involving UFOs emerged in the U.S. and develop a deeper understanding of the UFO phenomenon—and the social, political, and cultural developments that helped to shape it. ENROLL IN THIS COURSE → From Santiago to Patagonia Chile is a country defined by extreme geography and a diverse blend of cultures. From glimpsing Incan petroglyphs to reveling in Pablo Neruda’s poetry, we’ll explore many facets of modern Chilean culture while also learning about the country's ancient histories. Join us on this journey today. BOOK THIS TRIP →