St. Patrick

(Newser) - We all know what a shamrock looks like, but—speaking in scientific terms—just what is it? A clover? A wood sorrel? Some other type of plant? Unfortunately, there's no single answer: The shamrock is the stuff of legend, not science, the Smithsonian reports. Over the centuries, a number...

(Newser) - Never mind the fickle Irish weather. A chilly, damp Dublin celebrated St. Patrick's Day with artistic flair anyway today as the focal point for a weekend of Irish celebrations worldwide. More than 250,000 revelers braved the occasionally snowy, sleety skies to line the streets for the traditional holiday...

(Newser) - Feb. 29 still comes once every four years, but celebratory cocktails marking the bissextile have gone out of fashion—along with a leap-year tradition that requires plenty of liquid courage, Eric Felten notes in the Wall Street Journal. Women who proposed marriage during the leap year could not be denied;...