geography

Carson Campaign Says "NO" to Allowing Syrian Refugees Into Imaginary U.S. States

Andy Cush · 11/18/15 03:48PM

Imagine a bold reinvention of U.S. geography. Vermont, home of the dreaded Bernie Sanders, is forced to merge with Connecticut, and the rest of New England marches northward in celebration of the socialist purge. The Carson campaign would like you to know: If such an imaginary hybrid state did exist in real life, Carson would definitely not support Syrians taking refuge there.

Some Other Things We Could Name After William McKinley Instead

Alex Pareene · 08/31/15 01:30PM

Today there is one less large thing named after a man from Ohio, and the other men from Ohio are hopping mad. “Our beloved Ohio man needs his name on the large thing,” they cry. Their cries fall on deaf ears: Alaska’s Mt. McKinley is now Denali.

Adam Weinstein · 01/02/14 09:44AM

Boar Tush, Lick Skillet, Slick Lizard, and Smut Eye. Alabama town names are pretty weird. Weirder still is that a list of them is currently one of the most-read "stories" on Alabama's news site of record. What's the weirdest-named place you ever visited? Tell us in the comments.

Cord Jefferson · 10/07/13 12:32PM

CNN reports on China's deadly hornet outbreak on Friday by explaining that Hong Kong is now in South America. Those hornets really are powerful.

Samoa Jumps 24 Hours into the Future Tonight

Maureen O'Connor · 12/29/11 06:37PM

As promised, the island nations of Samoa and Tokelau will jump 24 hours into the future tonight, when the international date line is revised to facilitate Samoan trade with Asia, Australia, and New Zealand. (American Samoa will stay on Hawaii's side of the line.) When 18,600 Samoans and 1,500 Tokelauans go to bed tonight, it will be a Thursday. When they awake, it will be Saturday.

Watch Justin Bieber Struggle to Name All Seven Continents

Matt Cherette · 11/24/11 12:40AM

Justin Bieber stopped by the Late Show this evening for a chat with David Letterman. At one point, Bieber noted that he'd been to "every continent." But after being challenged by Letterman to actually name each of them, Bieber was less than successful. See that, plus Letterman telling Bieber that a photo of him looks like Marie Osmond, in the above video.

Nobody Smart Wants to Live in New England

Hamilton Nolan · 10/24/11 01:55PM

Well well well, quaint old New England is "reaching out" to its youth with a simple message: please, don't move away as soon as you get the chance. Sorry, "New" England. The youth are not about to be suckered into spending any more time there than absolutely necessary.

The U.S. Census Declares the Gayest City in America

Brian Moylan · 08/22/11 04:32PM

According to data on same-sex couples released by the U.S. Census Bureau, the gayest city in these 50 states is, not surprisingly, Provincetown, Mass., the vacation spot of circuit boys, insane writers, and homosexuals who make a whole lot more money than any of us.

Scientists Discover 657 New Islands

Max Read · 04/19/11 08:59PM

Scientists who study islands have apparently been sleeping on the job for years, because get this: Researchers have discovered 657 new islands around the world, making for a grand total of 2,149.

Here Are Some Warm Places to Move To

Brian Moylan · 02/03/11 02:11PM

In the northern parts of this country, it's already been a long, wild winter. That makes it the time of year when those of us in freezing cities fantasize about which tropical locations we'd move to. Let's contemplate the options.

Are You Smarter than the Average New Yorker? Probably!

cityfile · 12/30/09 12:50PM

"The Top of the Rock observation deck gives visitors a 360-degree, panoramic view of New York City, and is located in what famous skyscraper?" When 300 randomly selected NYC residents were asked that question, 34 percent said they didn't know. Another 41 percent responded that it's on top of the Empire State Building. [NYT/City Room]

Sarah Palin On Charges She Is An Idiot: No Comment

Hamilton Nolan · 11/07/08 02:28PM

The news media has tracked failed VP candidate Sarah Palin to the wilds of Alaska to get her reaction to the LOL-legation that she thought Africa was a country rather than a continent. Her forceful rebuke of the charge can be summed up as: It, uh, sounds like some bitters are saying I maybe, uh, didn't know the answer to a question so, uh, who was it that said that, anyhow? Click to watch the mush-mouthed meanderings of a geographically challenged woman.

WSJ Misidentifies Canada. Twice.

Ryan Tate · 09/16/08 09:18PM

This is what happens when you let an Australian-born media mogul buy an American newspaper and import his chief editor from Britain: Suddenly no one on staff can correctly identify the country to the north (for the record, it's "Canada" — just "Canada"). And to think we actually believed Robert Thomson would make the Wall Street Journal more globalist! [WSJ]