Question

Michelangelo Hated Painting the Sistine Chapel and Wrote a Poem About It

There are plenty of stories about how painting the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel was quite literally a pain for Michelangelo—the artist had to be in an incredibly awkward position to complete the work of art. He supposedly hated the task so much that he wrote a poem about it.

The sonnet, which was originally written in his native Italian in 1509, has been translated by American poet Gail Mazur. Here's a sample: "My stomach's squashed under my chin, my beard's pointing at heaven, my brain's crushed in a casket, my breast twists like a harpy's."

The Slinky Was Created by Accident

Inventor Richard James, a naval engineer, was trying to create a spring that could help stabilize equipment on boats in choppy waters. However, his spring's ability to move seemingly on its own proved more interesting and became the prototype for the Slinky in 1943.