book-report

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AJ on Alcohol

Before I started my year of living biblically, I had feared that I'd be forced into twelve months of sobriety. After all, I knew the puritans had a reputation for condemning alcohol. And certain fundamentalist Christians think of booze as up there with adultery, idol worship and South Park. Some even argue that the "wine" drunk in the Bible is not wine at all, but actually grape juice. This was apparently the thinking of a temperance advocate named Thomas Welch who tried to sell... READ ON

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In the Beginning: A Little Media Madness

Another installment from our new book In the Beginning. Enjoy! A Few Newspapers and Magazines Sure we know all about the birds and bees. But periodically, we like to explore where the rest of the buzz is coming from. The New York Times Founded in 1851, the Times made serious history just 20 years later: In 1871, its muckraking brought down the famous Boss Tweed of Tammany Hall. (The term "muckraking" hadn't actually been coined at the time, however; it was an early-1900s phenomenon.)... READ ON

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In the Beginning: It's almost almost here!

Reference Books Get ready for some serious volume control as we introduce you to the legends behind the Encyclopedia, the Dictionary, and the Thesaurus. The Encyclopedia "Encyclopedia" is a strange word. It goes back to Greek for "the things of boys/children in a circle," which makes about as much sense to us as it does to you. The first encyclopedia actually predates the word itself "“ it was written in 1270 B.C.E. in Syria "“ and the concept seems to have also... READ ON

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In the Beginning: Today we're seeing Red

Well, almost. With just 3 (three!) days to go until our new book's release, mental_floss is happy to present another origin story you're bound to dig. Enjoy! The Red Carpet If you want a black and white explanation for the public obsession with celebrity, it helps to start by understanding the red. Great Feets Hollywood actors are often considered American royalty, and as it turns out, they have the carpeting to match. The first mention of the red carpet we could find dates back to the story of... READ ON

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In the Beginning: Your prayers have been answered!

Well, almost. With just 6 (six!) days to go until our new book's release, mental_floss is happy to present another set of origins. Enjoy! Holy Architecture! When it comes to the history of religious architecture, we pray we've got the facts right. Karnak: One Beautiful Pyramid Scheme No religious site in Egypt dazzles more than the Karnak. The largest temple ever built, the Karnak is really a complex sprawling across 247 acres of land and constructed over 2,000 years, starting in the 15th... READ ON

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C is for Creationism

In my Year of Living Biblically, one of the more fascinating and surprising pilgrimages was to the new Creation Museum in Kentucky. This is the $25 million museum for those who believe that the earth is 6,000 years old. It's the Louvre of the young earth movement. And whatever I may think of creationism, I have to admit that the museum is spectacularly well done. There is a scale model of the ark. There are animatronic cave people and dinosaurs. There is a movie theater with sprinklers in the... READ ON

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In the Beginning: Why Can't it Be Out Already?!

Our new book In the Beginning's hitting stores in a week, and we can't wait to show it to you. Here's one of our favorite origin stories. And if you pre-order it today, we'll send you an autographed book plate (see details below). The Kiss (and tell) Preludes to a Kiss If you believe F. Scott Fitzgerald's famous quote, kissing "originated when the first male reptile licked the first female reptile, implying in a subtle, complimentary way that she was as succulent as the small reptile... READ ON

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AJ and the Amish

During my year of living biblically, I made several pilgrimages across America. I wanted to embed myself in various communities that live the Bible literally in their own way "“ from Hasidic Jews to evangelical Christians. I also invited religious people to my house. I think I'm the only person in American history to out-Bible talk a Jehovah's Witness. After about three hours, he looked at his watch and said, "I gotta go." One of my first trips was to Amish country in... READ ON

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In the Beginning: Do a little dance!

Who said you can't have your cake and eat it too? Our new book In the Beginning's hitting stores in little over a week, and we've got a fat slice of fact waiting for you below. Enjoy! Dancing (for fun) Since dance doesn't leave behind artifacts, we can't really tell you who was the first caveman to get up and do a jig. (There's a little evidence of dancing in Egyptian tomb paintings) What we can tell you quite a lot about is... The Waltz This dance, which may get its name from... READ ON

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In the Beginning: Pre-order it today!

In the Beginning's hitting stores in little over a week, and we're serving up another sample below. Enjoy! The Vacuum Cleaner How can we put this politely "“ the first vacuum cleaners kinda sucked. The Original Clean Sweep You could say that H. Cecil Booth invented the first suction-powered vacuum cleaner . . . or you could say that he was the first suction-powered vacuum cleaner. Having seen early models that simply blew the dust around without capturing much of it, Booth was unimpressed and... READ ON