Research wows

[MeghanJH]

I figure since we have a research thread I figured we should make a thread dedicated to the interesting things we stumble across while doing research for either an original story, a fanfiction, or even an assignment for a class.

My major research wow I just found out today while researching a fantasy story I am working on that is set in Celtic Ireland (~300 BC) about how war was conducted and Celtic warriors. Apparently Celtic warriors would strip down before battle, cover themselves in blue paint, and then go into battle with nothing more than their weapons, shield, and helmet. Also, female Celtic warriors were also greatly feared with the Roman historian Ammianus Marcellinus saying "a whole band of foreigners will be unable to cope with one [Gaul] in a fight, if he calls in his wife, stronger than he by far and with flashing eyes; least of all when she swells her neck and gnashes her teeth, and poising her huge white arms, begins to rain blows mingled with kicks, like shots discharged by the twisted cords of a catapult".

So what have you found in your research that freaked you out, amazed you, or just made you go "huh"?

[Tim Willard]

When researching Year of the Zombie the RPG, I found a few weird things. Like most people consider the FEMA CoG bunkers nothing more than myth and legend, and don't believe the government ever created underground bases, despite the fact that the old Titan and Atlas shelters can be purchased by civilians for homes.

But the weird thing I found out was that the Y2K problem did hit a branch of the government. The FEMA Hard Site records were lost.

It was weird finding out that the US Government lost over 500 underground facilities hardened to withstand nuclear near-hits. Just plain fucking lost.

Another weird thing I found is that most Europeans don't realize just how large the United States is.

But by far, the weirdest thing I found, was when I researching Neanderthal Man, and made an interesting discovery.

See, a few years ago some anthropologists discovered a swatch of garbage pits from Homo Erectus, and in these pits they found Homo Neanderthal bones.

The female bones were largely intact, but there were enough of them to make computer models of the females.

Wide hips, large buttocks, large heavy breasts.

The males, well... They all had teeth marks on their bones.

Teeth that coincided with Homo Erectus.

What happened to Neanderthal Man?

Homo Erectus found his women hot.

And the men...

Well, they were made of tasty tasty meat.

So we now know what happened to Homo Neanderthal.

[annabellamy]

While looking for tactics used in the Cold War, I stumbled across sleeper spies. They are ordinary people who have been 'trained' so that when they hear a specific phrase, something awakens inside of them and they become soldiers.

I'm not sure if it was real or just paranoia, but it's pretty sweet!

MK Ultra. A series of CIA experiments in mind control. Need I say anything else?

[Tim Willard]

If you want to know some serious Cold War WTF, PM me, annabellamy.

I can tell you true life tales that will blow your mind.

Take it from a former Cold War Supervillain, what people thought was going on, and the reality, was two different things

[shiko]

When I was doing research on the incubi I found a website the gave a step by step on how to bring one through the floor. O.O

[annabellamy]

When researching the Aesir, I found out that most of our weekdays come from the Vikings:

Tuesday: Tiw/Tyr
Wednesday: Woden/Odin
Thursday: Thor/Thunar
Friday: Freyr/Frigg (there's debate over this one)

[limelightqueen]

I had a brainwave for a modern day supernatural horror that was inspired by the nature trail in Wissahickon Creek called "Forbidden Drive." The name intrigued me so I went researching. Turns out the name doesn't come with a good story (it's called Forbidden Drive because it's forbidden to drive on it). But other parts of the trail have crazy stories: a pond called "Devil's Pool" because it is so deep that people used to say it reached down to hell, a Lovers' Leap that has a legend of an Indian Princess and her lover who both committed suicide by jumping off it because the princess's father wanted her to marry someone else. And a mystic hermit.

[Wham Bam I Am! Jam]

I can't remember what I was researching but i found out that, during World War Two, Norway only had one tank so that the soldiers knew what a tank looked like.

[annabellamy]

While researching Imperial Russia for a fight scene...

I HAVE THE SAME BIRTHDAY AS PETER THE GREAT! Seriously? I already have Johnny Depp and Matt Bellamy -.- Not to mention how many fuckign suicides happened, I have a politician to share it with now? Dude.

[shiko]

I found out that imps are more like demonic fairies according to legend. Let's just say my character now has a right to his berserk button.

[Madame Celeste]

One of my major research wows came while I was doing research for a voodoo witch character in one of my RP's. One voodoo spell I learned about involves a woman putting some of her own blood in her husband's coffee, which would ensure that he would never leave her or be unfaithful to her. I found this especially interesting because earlier my co-GM had created a character who effectively enslaved her significant other through a superpower eerily similar to this spell.

[annabellamy]

Arise thread! Awaken from your long slumber!

I may be distantly related to Annie Besant.

[stormcat]

This

Just... wow. You’d expect the worst sexism to come from the middle east or third-world countries, but the last “asylum” closed in just 1996 and in otherwise “Civlized” nations! Final nail in the coffin for turning me agnostic.