Did You Know? by David Barrow - HTML preview

The origins of Geisha Balls are uncertain: all we know is that they appeared in the Orient sometime around A.D. 500 and were originally used to pleasure men. Women soon cottoned on to the benefits of the device, and the balls' popularity went supernova. Recorded across most Asian cultures, Geisha Balls (also known as Ben Wa Balls, Rin No Tama or Burmese Balls) were the Rampant Rabbit of their day; a toy that could heighten pleasure during sex, or simply facilitate some good old-fashioned self-pleasure.

Penis Enlargement Third Century A.D.

An 'Apadravyas' made of gold, ivory, silver or wood to "supplement (the penis's) length or its thickness". That's right: before the invention of porcelain (seventh century), the number zero (ninth century) or the fall of Rome, our ancestors had discovered the strap-on.

Lube, Ancient Greece

Given their reputation for enjoying orifices that don't naturally  lubricate, it should come as no surprise that the Greeks were into their lube. While no record exists of its early use, we do know that by 350 B.C., olive oil was big business. In Aristotle's History of the Animals he makes passing reference to it, implying that smoother sex made pregnancy less likely. Two centuries later physician Soranus echoed his views; while Herodotus, Plutarch and Ovid all maintained that Athens got its name when Athena gifted the founders an olive tree - because that's how much they loved olive oil.

The Dildo 23,000 B.C.

The dildo may well be humanity's most durable invention. Only fire, weapons, clothing and beads seem to have been around longer. Even agriculture is an infant compared to crafted lumps of stone and wood modelled on our junk; 13,000 years younger, to be precise. And that's only taking into account the ones we've found: the oldest known dildo (an eight inch stone behemoth discovered in Germany) dates back 26,000 years, but there's no reason to assume there aren't other, older models out there. Archaeologists find them all the time; it's almost as if people in the prehistoric era found sex a natural, enjoyable thing they didn't have to be ashamed of. Speaking of which…

Pornography 33,000 B.C.

A few years back, archaeologists uncovered a pervy prehistoric statue. Carved from mammoth tusk, it featured a female torso with, how shall I put this, 'exaggerated' sexual parts. Although its age is uncertain, the best guess places it at over 35,000 years old; which means it may even pre-date religion. Now, obviously the history of religion is largely guesswork and some argue it's much older than that, but still… the implication that we only sat down to figure out the meaning of life after we'd first solved "doing-it-yourself" may be the single most jaw-dropping case of prioritisation the universe will ever see.

Amazing Great Escapes That Really Happened

Fictional great escapes can rarely compete with those that happen in real life. Many lists have already covered escapes from prisons - and even though this list has one or two that corresponds with that sort, I decided to focus on other - perhaps more fascinating - true escape stories. Escapes from death, oppression and hunger - some are very well known, others less so, but they all have one thing in common: bravery. The bravery of men, women and sometimes even children has provided us with eloquent proof of man's passion for freedom, righteousness and the will to survive.

Crawling Towards Freedom

The Becker house stood directly on the border that separated East from West Berlin. Clara Becker, a widow, raised her six children to be hardworking and industrious. Their house was always overflowing with all the young people from the neighborhood. As the Berlin wall came up, their world closed in. Extra police were brought in from all over East Germany to man the border after some people managed to escape. Amid acute food-shortages and horrendous rumors, the Beckers knew they had to get out before it became too late. After an almost fatal escape-attempt, the Beckers and some of their friends decided to dig a tunnel to West Germany from the their own house. It took the diggers (working in shifts; teams of two with only hammers, shovels and pickaxes) three days just to get through the basement wall. Getting rid of the dirt in an old well, the teams faced daily uncertainty as they battled cave-ins and certain death if caught. On January 24th 1962, a band of 28 refugees finally managed to crawl into West Berlin and to freedom.

Saved By Wallpaper

Martin Kaylor was going home after serving as a gunner in the Korean War. After failing to understand the Korean villagers' warnings, his convoy was ambushed and Kaylor, wounded, was captured. It was snowing heavily when they were forced marched, limping, over icy mountain trails  for 11 days. The Chinese indoctrination began. "Imperialism is bad", "We are treating you well", "Who is the aggressor in Korea?", "Why is the US the aggressor in Korea?" became staple parts of their daily lectures. The weeks turned into months, and many died of malnutrition and dysentery. After being moved again, the POW's finally realized that they were never going to be released. All 19 marines in the group sneaked off, and waded across the Imjin River - running for miles until a Korean man found them and hid them in a deserted house. They marveled at the wallpaper inside the house, as it was the first wallpaper they had seen in ages. It turned out that the wallpaper was to be their saving grace. They used strips of it to spell out "POW 19 RESCUE" in the nearby rice paddy; these words were spotted by an observer plane, and the men were rescued.

A Lifeline Called Comet

Countess Andree de Jongh was a member of the Belgian Resistance during the Second World War. As a young girl, her heroine had been Edith Cavell, a nurse who was shot for helping troops cross from occupied Belgium to the Netherlands. At the age of 21, de [ongh arrived in Bilbao, Spain, having travelled over the Pyrenees on foot. Upon arrival she requested British support for her escape network, The Comet Line, which helped Allied soldiers to return  to Britain - her request was granted by M19. Starting in Brussels, the men would be given false documents before being hidden in safe-houses. A network of people then guided them via Spain and Gibraltar. Numbers vary, but we do know for a fact that the Countess helped more than 500 soldiers escape. She escorted 118 airmen over the Pyrenees herself!

Escape From Slavery

Harriet Tubman grew up in Maryland as a slave. As a young girl, she was severely beaten by her masters and at one point suffered a serious head wound which led to her having seizures, headaches and very powerful visions. A devout Christian, she