Never before has the U.S. national debt grown at such a pace. It grew by one trillion in 2008. Estimates put 2009 growth at three trillion. That’s comparable to the growth of public debt accrued throughout the entire first half of this decade – in one year! One quarter of our ENTIRE U.S. national debt will be accumulated just in 2009; ie. It took about 99 years to reach the nine trillion mark. And one year on top of that to reach (and exceed) the 12 trillion mark.

The documentary I.O.U.S.A. details the national debt and what it means for average Americans.

Be prepared to lose some sleep tonight. Princeton University have their impressive collection of death masks online, documented in a series of creepy photos, displaying death masks throughout history. Some amazing examples are on display, for instance, this one to the right, Abraham Lincoln, 16th president of the United States of America, and others like Sir Isaac Newton, Napoleon III and James Dean.

See more of the Laurence Hutton Collection of Death Masks at Princeton’s site or hit the jump below for a few spooky examples

Read more of ”Deathmasks throughout history“

A beautiful collection of archived photos from the Los Angeles Herald Express, dating from 1936 until 1961, giving us a striking look into local crime, scandal and even dog adoption ads. Ah, the good old days, when even tabloids had style. Courtesy of the Los Angeles Public Library, who are archiving some of the most amazing photos I’ve seen and presenting them online.

Photos to the left, Mrs. Nancy Keith (top), holding photos of her missing children in 1948 and Mrs. Lola Titus (bottom) being dragged into court kicking and screaming to hear herself judged legally insane after she was convicted of assault with a deadly weapon for shooting nightclub operator Mark Hansen in 1948. She was committed to an insane asylum as punishment for her crimes.

Many of the hundreds of photos are NSFW, as some document some pretty gruesome crime scenes. Office workers consider yourself warned!

Sunday, December 7th, 1941 will always be a day remembered in the US. On that morning at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, the Japanese forces staged an extremely successful (and terribly mistaken) surprise attack on the US Navy forces which docked in the harbor. Needless to say the US never imagined such an attack coming, which attributed to the success of the Japanese mission. When all was said and done over 2,400 people were dead, several ships were total losses and over 188 aircraft were completely destroyed. These photos recently surfaced, taken shortly after the attack by someone who’s obviously kept them for all this time (or maybe someone going through a family members possessions found them), are extremely crisp and clear, giving us an incredibly clear look at the damage that resulted from the sneak attack.

See more: Photos from after the attack on Pearl Harbor

Pictures are in fact worth a thousand words and more, which the wonderful Picture History site attempts to prove. By taking some of history’s most famous captured images and giving a history on each shot, Picture History is creating one of the largest and most interesting galleries on the internet. Featuring thousands of photographs from the last 150 years, you can search photos by theme or randomly find a fascinating photo and read it’s history.

Read more: Picture History

Journalists Diego and Paola have been documenting Europe’s megalithic and prehistoric sites since 1996, during their many holiday travels. During this time they’ve taken thousands of photographs and written many stories on the history behind Europe’s many prehistoric sites, which they’ve combined into a large online travel guide, taking readers on a virtual tour of prehistoric locations throughout Europe. Thousands of images and panoramic 3d images are available on the ‘tours’, as well as travel diaries, maps and local resource links in case you decide to take the plunge and visit one of these beautiful locations in real-life. Today’s a good day to be bored at the office.

Read more: Virtual tours of Europe’s megalithic and prehistoric sites | Cartabianca Books