Sarah Laskow's User Profile - Atlas Obscura

Sarah Laskow

Former Atlas Obscura staff writer

2015
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Antarctica Is Covered in Streams and Waterfalls

Scientists have mapped the continent's meltwater systems for the first time. They also make for good video.

Found: Medieval Manuscripts Stolen From Italy, Hiding in the Boston Public Library

The library obtained them legitimately, but they were never meant to be in America.

Found: A Giant Morel Mushroom Hiding in the Indiana Woods

Officials described it as "ginormous."

Raising Orange Peels to an Art Form, One Fruit at a Time

The artist Yoshihiro Okada uses only whole, unbroken peels.

The Behind-the-Scenes Story of an Unplanned Meltdown at America’s First Nuclear Power Reactor

Ray Haroldsen didn't really notice anything was wrong.

Found: A 13,000-Year-Old Dental Filling Made of Bitumen

Found: A Dead Bat in a Pre-Packaged Salad

Even for gross things found in food, this one is weird.

Utah's First Federal Surveyor Fled the Territory Fearing for His Life

And helped start a war between James Buchanan and Brigham Young.

Found: A Silver Snake Ring Dating Back to Roman Britain

An excavation in northern England has found clues to its past.

Found: Roman-Era Mosaics Dating Back to the First Century

For interior decorating inspiration.

Listening to Icebergs' Loud and Mournful Breakup Songs

Scientists are just learning to decode the sounds of icebergs.

Found: An Invading Snail That Slings Slime at its Prey

It took up residence on the USNS Vandenberg, which was sunk as an artificial reef.

Found: An Ancient Tick Preserved in Amber With Fossilized Mammal Blood

There’s a reason why this sounds so much like the beginning of Jurassic Park.

Listen to the Strange and Wonderful Sound of One of Earth's Best Whistlers

“You can’t really study or learn whistling, but it is kind of magical to see and hear.”

Found: First Evidence in England of Burning Dead Bodies to Keep Them From Rising

In medieval times, belief in revenants was widespread.

Found: A Note Sent Into the Air by Balloon in 1987

It was discovered more than 300 miles away, three decades later.

The Case for Preserving the 20th Century Tollbooth

When highways were marvels, toll plazas were well designed.

Found: Unworn Levi's From 1893

They're worth tens of thousands of dollars.

endangered animals

Found: A New Population of Endangered Tigers

Including six cubs!

The Folger Shakespeare Library Will Lend Chilly Readers a Handmade Shawl

The reading room's head of circulation has created an informal lending library of coziness.

Found: A Maud Lewis Painting in a Thrift Store Bin

An unknown benefactor donated a work by one of Canada's most famous folk artists.

Found: A Secret Warehouse Full of Toy Trains

Trains, trains, and more trains.

One Sloppy Land Surveyor Almost Caused a War Between Missouri and Iowa

In 1839, the outcome of the "Honey War" hinged on the exact location of the Missouri-Iowa border.

Found: A ‘Very Large’ African Cat Roaming the Streets of New Jersey

A tiger? A bobcat? No, a pricey "savannah cat."