http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs Feel Smart Again Fri, 20 Nov 2009 20:42:26 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en Fifty years ago this week, the world was introduced to Rocket "Rocky" J. Squirrel and Bullwinkle J. Moose. An animated television series called Rocky and His Friends debuted on ABC at 5:30 pm on November 19, 1959. In 1961, the show moved to NBC, where it was renamed The Bullwinkle ... http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/40871 Every Friday, I post a series of unrelated questions meant to spark conversation in the comments. Answer one, answer all, respond to someone else's reply, whatever you want. Very casual. On to this week's topics of discussion... 1. Earlier this decade, I had an interview with a big PR firm. The ... http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/41266 There are obscure holidays, and then there are really obscure holidays. I used to think Canadian Boxing Day and Three Kings' Day were weird; in reality, there are so many holidays stuffed into our calendar that you could spend the whole year observing them and still miss a few. ... http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/41218 The mental_floss store has terrific holiday gifts for everyone from Grandpa to your Secret Santa pick. Through Monday, we're offering FREE SHIPPING on all U.S. & Canadian orders! So go on, knock out your shopping in one visit, and kick back. Just enter the coupon code EARLYBIRD before checkout. Offer valid ... http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/40843 When Lafayette Ronald Hubbard founded Scientology in 1952, he had no idea there would one day be something called Techno music (best done in Germany, of course) let alone a quiz devoted to comparing and contrasting them. Turns out, the two have a lot in common. See if you can ... http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/41046 Funnyman Eddie Murphy has been on the national stage for nearly 30 years now, so it’s understandable that audiences think they know the comedian and actor inside and out. Here are five things you might not know about the man who brought Axel Foley to life: 1. He Knew ... http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/41115 Lost Man Drives 400 Miles to Get Newspaper Eighty-one-year-old Eric Steward of Yass, New South Wales, Australia went out to get a morning paper on Wednesday. He took a wrong turn onto a highway and drove for nine hours before stopping to ask for directions! Steward ended up in Geelong, Victoria, ... http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/41252 Here's the second entry in our Brain Game number block puzzle series. Enjoy! Each of the nine squares inside the main red grid should contain either a 1, 2, or 3. Three of these numbers are already provided for you. Place a 1, 2, or 3 in each of the blank squares ... http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/41228 I've written a lot about strange places in the U.S. this year -- an airplane graveyard in the desert; a mock Iraqi village in the suburbs of San Diego; a town killed by a modern-day dustbowl two hours north of Los Angeles. But the strangest place I've ever been ... http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/41090 NASA needs lots of help sorting through the hundreds of thousands of images they've collected from the surface of Mars. To enlist volunteer participation, they developed the online game Be A Martian, in which players analyze data and collect points. (via Metafilter) * Will turkeys respond to beatboxing any sooner than plain ... http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/41231