Current Events Story Briefs

What is in the news has roots in culture, history, economics, and politics. Here we provide the back story for issues we see in the news.

Abu Bakr al Baghdadi leads insurgents called ISIS (Islamic State in Iraq and Syria) and/or IS (Islamic State). Does his name have a special meaning?

Alexander Hamilton had words of advice in a deadlocked political battle. He's now the subject of a major musical. Watch how it all started in this vid...

Every November 5th, as bonfires burn, Britain celebrates being saved from a national catastrophe when Guy Fawkes was discovered with 36 barrels of gun...

What makes a simple bar of soap a deadly weapon against COVID-19?

John McCrae's poem, "In Flanders Field," is often recited on Veterans' Day. Learn the story behind the poem. It is one of the most-quoted war poems in...

Kristallnacht begins in Germany on the 9th of November, 1938. What was it and why did it begin?

Today's fight for Mosul is not the first time this city has been embattled. It was once involved in the Battle of Gaugamela, fought between Alexander ...

This NASA video explains Super Moons (and why they are so bright and beautiful).

Super Moons are awesome, but April's Super Pink Moon is spectacular!

Although Vincent van Gogh could not sell his own paintings, today his art work sells for millions of dollars. This story is about his painting called ...

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