A Wrong Made Wright: 5 Most Incredible Discoveries of the Week

A burial site crammed with curses and the "holy grail" of missing documents make the list:

• Missing Patent for Wright Brothers' 'Flying Machine' Found: Missing for decades, the Wright brothers' patent for their "Flying Machine" was found last month in a manila envelope among 15-foot-high stacks of patent files in a limestone cave outside a small Kansas city. The reason this "holy grail" of documents went missing might be of the most mundane variety.
• Lone Bullet Backs Up Lawrence of Arabia's Story: Ten years into a broader hunt throughout the Arabian desert, archaeologists have unearthed a bullet they are "almost 100% certain" is the one Lawrence of Arabia claimed to have fired in 1917 in a guerrilla attack on the Hallat Ammar train. It might just prove that Lawrence wasn't spinning tall tales.

• Tablets in Ancient Grave Placed an Old Curse: Five lead tablets buried in the grave of a young Greek woman about 2,400 years ago bear curses against four tavern-keepers in Athens. Burying the tablets was thought to put the curses closer to gods who could fulfill them. Based on what's written, we now have a better idea of what was going on in those old taverns.
• 'Bad' Carbs Nearly Double Cancer Risk: Meat is often the bad guy linked to higher cancer rates, but researchers out of NYU report that highly processed "bad" carbohydrates (think sugary soft drinks and pizza) also are linked to higher cancer rates. The link is strongest to one particular cancer.
• Horse Manure Helps Crack Ancient Military Mystery: Ace history students might remember that Hannibal led his Carthagian army across the Alps around 200BC and soundly defeated the Roman army in one of the most epic military maneuvers of all time. But not even actual historians can tell you with any degree of certainty where Hannibal crossed those mountains—until now. And it's all thanks to a telltale heap of ancient horse dung.

Click to read about more discoveries, including a look at what creeps us out and why. (More discoveries stories.)