The Chronicle of Higher Education, Aug. 22, 2001

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A Glance at the Debut Issue of "Mental Floss"
By Dan Kincaid

This new magazine purports to give the facts -- about such topics as the basics of astronomy, the bloody history of Guatemala, or the Dead Sea Scrolls. Aimed at "knowledge junkies, nerds, smart-alecks, and know-it-alls," the magazine offers, in the words of its executive editor, "sex, intrigue, and pages simply drenched in facts." Written in clear, often lighthearted prose ("The Milky Way should have disintegrated billions of years ago, but here it is today looking like a perfectly normal spiral galaxy"), the pithy, encyclo pedia-like briefs and two- to three-page feature articles by contributors all aim to explain, clarify, and fill the gaps in our knowledge. What kinds of knowledge? Well, the things we really ought to know (the fundamentals of financial planning), learned but forgot (Whom did Alexander the Great conquer, and when, where, and why?), or just never did understand (What's dark matter again?). There's trivia, too. Apparently Alexander's favorite horse was named Bucephalus, "It is against the law to look at a moose from an airplane in Alaska ... and most definitely illegal to knit during fishing season in New Jersey," and the drum-loving Muppets character Animal was based on the Who's drummer Keith Moon. Oh, and the name of a hill in New Zealand,

Taumatawhakatangihangakoauauotamateaturipukakapikimaungahoronukupokaiwhenuakitanatahu,

is the second-longest place name—just in case you were wondering. The magazine's articles are not available online, but more information about "Mental Floss" may be found on its Web site, at http://www.mentalflossmag.com.

Copyright © 2001 The Chronicle of Higher Education.