Got 2-4 minutes? We need a small army of volunteers to participate in an online survey for the magazine, of the magazine. Here’s who qualifies:

1) People who have read the Election Issue (It doesn’t matter whether you get a subscription or picked up a copy at your local newsstand/Borders/Walmart/Whole Foods/etc.)

2) People who can complete the survey between now and Sunday.

If you’re interested, head on over and take the survey.

One (1) survey respondent—chosen at random—will win a $25 shopping spree in the mental_floss store, and three (3) more will win mental_floss back issues. (To enter, just fill out the survey and supply your email address at the end of it.)

If you’ve made it this far, I commend you! One more puzzle to solve and you’re home free. First one to send in the correct answer to the challenge below, along with the correct answers found all along the path this week, AND, the logic behind ‘em (which is to say: HOW DID YOU KNOW?), gets a pick of any t-shirt and book from our store.
As with last month, we’re also adding some special prizes this time around for those who come really close, but don’t get all the answers in time. We’ve previously awarded some shirts and books to a couple contestants who impressed us with charts, diagrams, and other complex methods of recording and organizing the clues/answers. So we’ll be on the lookout for the creative among you, as well. This is all to say: it pays to play whether you nab the grand prize or not.

Also new this time around, we’re going to give away a really big, sa-weeet prize to any winning contestant who can defend the title three months in a row. Details on that as they develop, if they develop. If you haven’t met defending champion Katie Wnuk , you can read about her here.

As comments have been turned off for the length of the hunt, please click on the following link and send your answers and logic to us at: TriviaHunt@Gmail.com

If you missed Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday’s challenges, there might still be time to solve them all. No one knows how long it’ll take for one of you trivia junkies to nail down the whole megillah, so make haste, make haste. And now, on the next page, I present the final puzzle, drawing on all the answers you dug up along the trail.

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As the college football season kicks off, teams are ready to vie for the two national championship trophies. But that’s not the only hardware that will change hands this season, since many intercollegiate rivalries have their own special trophies. Some are pretty standard silver cups or plaques, while others are a bit more esoteric. Here are a few of our favorites.

1. Illibuck—Illinois vs. Ohio State

When Illinois and Ohio State met during the 1925 season, they had a new prize in their sights: a live turtle named Illy Illibuck. Why a turtle? Turtles have long life expectancies, and the students wanted to honor the long life of the rivalry. Unfortunately, this particular turtle didn’t live so long; it died in 1927. At that point, a wooden turtle took its place, and it’s been exchanged ever since.

2. Case Western Reserve vs. College of Wooster—The Baird Brothers Trophy

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Every other person I know says he/she loves the movie This is Spinal Tap. Whelp, it’s time to separate the real diehards from the wannabes. It’s time to get serious - as serious as one can get with a band that penned songs called “No Place Like Nowhere” and “Smell the Glove.” Think of this as the warmup quiz for next week’s ULTIMATE Tap Quiz. Have fun with it, and remember: Rock n Roll!

If you didn’t see the movie, you ain’t missin’ much, but the first 30 seconds of the trailer lays out what Jonsey’s looking for in this sequel:

What Indiana’s referring to, of course, is Eldorado — the mythical golden city that British explorer Percy Fawcett disappeared trying to find in the Amazon. Various search-and-rescue parties over the years tried to find Fawcett, but never could; surely evidence that he had connected with and been beamed up by aliens!

But hold your guffaws for just a moment — what should hit the news cycle today but reports of not one but a series of highly-developed, interconnected, urbanized “lost cities” in a remote part of what was previously thought to be virgin Amazon rainforest! As recently as the 15th century, the Upper Xingu region was home to “a grid-like pattern of settlements connected by roads and centered around large plazas … now almost completely overgrown by rainforest.” (more…)

Senator John McCain just named Alaska Governor Sarah Palin as his running mate. I’ll admit we didn’t have a “Fun Facts About Sarah Palin” column on the ready (though we hear her nickname was “Sarah Barracuda” and she was a scrappy high school point guard on the 1982 Wasilla Warriors state championship team), so our contribution to the VP media circus will have to come from our archives. Here are five VP stories/quizzes we’ve run in the past:

1. Our Scandalous Vice Presidents: 10 Memorable Backup Plans
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2. The Conservatives Hated Bush 41 (and 7 Other Reactions to VP Choices)
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3. Al Gore’s Messy Office
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4. Name the Last 10 Vice Presidents
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5. Name the Last 10 Vice Presidential Losers

And if we have any readers in Alaska who want to weigh in with fun facts about Sarah Palin, go for it.

We’ve all heard that the United Arab Emirates has been hard at work constructing the world’s tallest building. The Burj Dubai currently stands 159 stories tall, and will include 30,000 homes, 9 hotels, 19 residential towers, and the Dubai Mall. The entire project is estimated to cost $20B, but that’s hardly the only thing the UAE likes supersized. Here are a few other records the tiny nation holds:

World’s Largest Flag

On UAE National Day, a 50,000 square feet flag flew over Abu Dhabi, forming the largest aerial banner ever flown.

World’s Largest Indoor Snow Park

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The Dilemma: Either you’re a rabid AC/DC fan in search of lyrical meaning or you’ve got some pressing need to blow something up. Either way, we’ve got your answer.

People You Can Impress: demolition experts, mustachioed villains from silent movies, and Wile E. Coyote

The Quick Trick: If it’s a white powder found in sticks, it’s dynamite. If it’s a yellow crystal, it’s TNT. Use this little mnemonic to remember dynamite’s inventor: “Winning a Nobel Prize would be dynamite!” The alternative, that winning would be TNT, just doesn’t make any sense.

The Explanation: A lot of people use these two terms interchangeably, and the common misperception is that TNT is the chemical name and dynamite is the colloquial term. But like any good misperception, that’s just plain wrong.
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The fact that I refer to today’s answer as being an “American English” word might provide a hint, so keep that in mind:

HERE is the answer.

Let’s kick things off with one of the greatest passive-aggressive notes I’ve ever seen.
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If you’re heading to the beach, here’s a little inspiration: 8 Architecturally Awesome Sand Castles.
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Discover Magazine offers 20 Things You Didn’t Know About Telescopes.
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No matter what Bloomberg News says, Steve Jobs is not dead.
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If you’re into political history, check out John Harwood’s video history of the 1948-2004 conventions. I only wish there were more links to more footage.
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From WebUrbanist, 15 dramatic guerrilla marketing campaigns. The John 3:16 Guy gets a mention.
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Here’s a list of all the TV show marathons airing over Labor Day Weekend. Now’s a good time to catch up on your Coach reruns.
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I’ve been searching for a witty Canadian freelance writer (or two) to work on a series of stories about Canadian history, political scandals, roadside attractions, goalie nicknames, etc. If you have any suggestions, leave us a comment. Here’s a piece on Canada’s most haunted places.
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And check out Sandy’s incredibly long list of celebrity motorcycle crashes.