Like his famous brother Ernest, who was born today in 1899, Leicester Hemingway was a novelist and a storyteller. But Leicester did something even Ernest never did: he created his own micronation. Here's the story of the Republic of New Atlantis. Plus: back in 1958, a farmer in Florida made his first payment on a new Chevrolet in an unusual way. 

Contents of a country: Leicester Hemingway’s Republic of New Atlantis (University of Texas)

Miscellany, Jul. 21, 1958 (TIME)

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Today in 1969, astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin landed on the moon. But as the Apollo 11 mission went on, they had a problem: a broken switch threatened to keep them from returning to Earth. Fortunately, they had a solution: office supplies. Plus: the Lunar Lander Dwelling in Washington state is a 250 square foot getaway in the shape of the lunar module.

When Buzz Aldrin and Neil Armstrong Were Nearly Stranded on the Moon (History.com)

The Lunar Lander Replica House Just Might Be The Most Unique Home In Washington (Only in Washington)

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It's National Ice Cream Day, so it's a good day to tell the story of Agnes B. Marshall. The "Queen of Ices" helped make this frozen treat the icon that it is today. Plus: on this day in 1975, ground control played the song “Hello Darlin” by country star Conway Twitty to astronauts in Earth orbit. Only this version of the song was a little different.

The 19th-century entrepreneur who pioneered modern ice cream (The Hustle)

Do You Remember When Conway Twitty Sang 'Hello Darlin' in Russian? (Wide Open Country)

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Washington DC is home to monuments, memorials and the largest library in the world. Here's some of the history of the Library of Congress. Plus: a real estate listing for waterfront land in Ontario had a price of $99,000, though with one big consideration.

10 Facts You Probably Didn’t Know About The Library Of Congress (DCist)

Fascinating Facts (Library of Congress)

Vacant lot in Ontario could be a steal at $99K — if only it wasn't under water (CBC)

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Today in 2006, Twttr launched; and in its early days the social media platform gained vowels in its name and fame for a cute whale that would show up during its then-regular outages. Here's the story of Lifting A Dreamer, aka the "Fail Whale." Plus: if you’re a fan of scuba diving or snorkeling, the Geneinno S2 undersea scooter is a new high tech way to do it. 

Twitter launches (History.com)

Lifting A Dreamer (the Twitter Fail Whale) and Beyond (Yiying Lu)

An Underwater Sea Scooter for Exploring the Ocean (UrbanDaddy)

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This week in 2005, Kyle MacDonald of Montreal had a red paperclip. This week in 2006, MacDonald had traded away the paperclip, and, after a few more trades, ended up with a house. Plus: over in the UK, some small towns have traded out the phones in some of their big red phone boxes for a new use. 

Paperclip Cottage Cafe (Tourism Saskatchewan)

From paper-clip to house in 14 trades (CBC)

How Small English Towns Are Turning Their Iconic Red Telephone Boxes Into Public Heart Defibrillators (Laughing Squid)

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A multi-country research team has found ways to turn polyethylene, a key ingredient in single-use plastic bags, into lightweight fabric. So those bags that we don't want to throw out but can't always easily recycle? We might end up wearing them. Plus: many of us spend a lot of our waking hours typing, but James Cook turns his typing into art.

Plastic Bags Could Be Recycled Into Wearable Fabrics, Says New Research (Designboom)

This Artist Draws Using Only Letters and Numbers on Old Typewriters (The Sifter)

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Today in 2006, the largest photograph ever taken was released to the world. It’s known today as The Great Picture: 31 feet tall, 107 feet wide. Here's how it was taken. Plus: in Tokyo, a giant 3D screen outside a train station is featuring a giant 3D calico cat that stares down at the people several stories below.

Big picture thinking! World’s largest photograph measuring 31ft high and 107ft wide goes on display (and it needed the biggest camera ever made to take it) (Daily Mail)

World's Largest Pinhole Camera Takes World's Largest Photo (ABC News)

A giant cat appears in front of Shinjuku station! (DreamNews)

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Today in 1929, the then-territory of Alaska flew its flag for the first time. That flag, which is still used today, was designed by a 13 year old of Aleutian descent, Benny Benson. Plus: it was this day in 1872 that John F. Blondel of Maine made pastry history. 

Benny Benson: An Alaska Kid Who Made History (Alaska Historical Society)

The Hole Truth: Celebrating a Huge Day in Doughnut History (The Fiscal Times)

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There was a story recently about how NASA was partnering with Tide laundry detergent to work on a way to do laundry in space. Which means we don’t already do laundry in space, and there are some pretty big reasons why. Plus: the Royal Mail delivers a letter addressed to a woman who’d been on TV, only the writer didn't exactly have the woman's address. 

NASA and Tide team up to do laundry in space (CNET)

Astronauts' Dirty Laundry (NASA)

Royal Mail delivers letter addressed to 'woman in Cornwall shed' (BBC)

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