Frank Jacobs's User Profile - Atlas Obscura

Frank Jacobs

Journalist, writer, atlas enthusiast, weirdness fan, ‘Strange Maps’ columnist

https://twitter.com/VeryStrangeMaps

2023
joined atlas
obscura

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published

Christianity Is Disappearing in England, As Seen in These Maps

See what's taking its place for the first time in almost 1,500 years.

December 15, 2023

Most Canadians Live South of Seattle and Other Map Surprises

We're wrong about directions and locations of many countries.

December 8, 2023

The Strange Case of Antarctica’s Red and Green Snow

It’s not a Christmas trick, but the colorful effect could change everything.

December 1, 2023

Why We Couldn’t Describe a Flavor We Taste Every Day

The human tongue detected it long before it could say it.

November 24, 2023

Do Colder or Warmer Places Eat More Spicy or Bland Food?

The correlation between temperature and flavor is obvious across the U.S., Europe, and Asia.

November 17, 2023

Your Personality Depends on Which U.S. State You Live In

A map of confidence and kindness from California to New York.

November 10, 2023

The Mystery of the World’s Largest and Deepest Gravity Hole

The sea level here is hundreds of feet lower than the rest of the ocean.

November 3, 2023

The Fight Between Cataphiles and Underground Police in the Paris Catacombs

Will the tunnels, host to many illegal parties, get filled with concrete?

October 27, 2023

Which States Have the Most Dead Presidents?

The answer reveals grave robbing problems for America’s deceased leaders.

October 20, 2023

Where Humans Think Aliens Are Most Likely to Land

Will extraterrestrials try to see the city or the countryside?

October 13, 2023

The Loneliest Road in Every State in America

Find your state's quietest route.

October 6, 2023

alternate history

This Map Shows a Divided and Conquered USA If America Had Lost WWII

Which parts of the East Coast and California might Germany and Japan have claimed?

September 29, 2023

Uneven Gravity Makes You Weigh More in Illinois Than in Indiana

A number of factors cause you to be lighter or heavier in different parts of the world.

September 22, 2023

Is Mordor Based on the Himalayas?

Much of Asia seems to be riddled onto the Lord of the Rings map of Middle Earth.

September 15, 2023

The Center of the Earth Has an Imaginary Island and One Floating Soul

Fact and fiction blend together at zero latitude and zero longitude.

September 8, 2023

The Father of Medieval Geography Is Unfairly Blamed for One Very, Very Bad Map

He also made the most accurate world map of that time—and left out the sea monsters.

September 1, 2023

The Little-Known Land Fraud That Changed American History

Without this now-obscure land investment scheme, the Yazoo Land Affair, Georgia might have been a "super state."

August 25, 2023

the soviet imprint

The Anti-Monopoly Board Game That Promoted a 'Soviet America'

In 1934, American Communists translated a Stalinist book about revolution into a children’s game. Curiously, it didn't catch on.

August 18, 2023

What Do King Charles III, the Pope, and the Canadian Inuit Have in Common?

Meet the world's largest landowners.

August 11, 2023

alternate history

A Map of the 'Disunited States' Shows the Fears of Civil War–Era America

A nation divided into not two—but four—took the idea of secession to an extreme.

Mongolia’s 'Forbidden Zone' Is Guarding an 800-Year-Old Secret

Is the vast Khan Khentii Strictly Protected Area the final resting place of Genghis Khan?

There Are at Least 10 Cities With Their Own Psychological Disorders

Stockholm Syndrome is the most famous, and most relate to tourism or hostage-taking.

solar system models

There’s an Entire Solar System Hiding In Sweden

Get ready for the most peculiar road trip that will help you understand the vastness and emptiness of the solar system—and Sweden.

Sea Cucumber Crime Is a Thing, and This Is Where It’s Happening

A "seafood mafia" is plying the waters between India and Sri Lanka to satisfy China's appetite for an increasingly rare delicacy.