Skip to main content area
Mental Floss
Magazine Cover Get a RISK-FREE issue Give a Gift iPad Subscription
Follow us on YouTube

Main menu

  • Amazing Facts
  • Big Questions
  • Knowledge Feed
  • LIsts
  • Quizzes
  • Subscribe
  • Store

planes

Article

Out to Launch

According to this month's Wired magazine, speed enthusiast and self-described "inventrapreneur" Brian Walker is planning on shooting himself into space (or at least 20 miles into the atmosphere) via an enormous home-made crossbow. The plan is simply to "stretch a carbon-fiber bowstring 24 feet along a rail, fire up a jet turbine with 1,350 pounds of thrust, hit a trigger and pull 10 G's." Easier said than done, of course. Aside from catapulting himself, Walker is also... READ ON

Pages

  • « first
  • ‹ previous
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4
  • 5
  • 6
  • 7
  • 8

Daily Floss

Morning Cup of Links

Baby Bunnies in the Barracks

5 Questions

5 Questions: Boys Behaving Badly

Brain Game

The Human Sponge

Lunchtime Quiz

Lesser-Known Founding Fathers

One of Prince Charles's Secret Service code names was "Unicorn."

Hit me with the next fact

brilliant questions from you!

What's the Difference Between Ketchup and Catsup?
>
How Does a Plastic Bag Fix a Buggy Credit Card?
>
Why Does the Snooze Button Only Give You 9 More Minutes of Sleep?
>
SUBMIT A QUESTION

we want your answers!

What's the Most Mind-Blowing Fact You've Ever Heard?
What Spelling Bee Word Tripped You Up?

water cooler ammo

SIGN UP NOW
for our daily newsletter with exclusive nuggets of information guaranteed to amaze your coworkers and friends!

Also on Mental Floss:

  • © 2012 Mental Floss
  • About
  • RSS
  • Privacy
  • Terms
  • Contact
  • Press
  • Advertising
  • Subscribe
  • Store
  • Give a Gift
  • iPad
  • Subscriber Services
  • Giveaways
  • Back Issues
Share to Facebook Share to Twitter
DID YOU KNOW? Marlon Brando hated memorizing lines so much that he posted cue cards everywhere to help him get through scenes. He even asked for lines to be written on an actress's posterior. (That request was denied.)