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Mental Floss
Through thousands of years of knowledge and learning, we’ve developed extremely advanced intelligence as a species, especially when compared to other animals. But what made us so unique? What evolutionary paths did we take that others did not? The theorie
M Asher Cantrell|
One of the great overlooked albums of the 1980s, Famous Blue Raincoat by Jennifer Warnes features the singer covering the songs of Leonard Cohen. Warnes even ended up co-writing one of the album's tracks, based on the life of a modern-day Catholic saint.
Bill DeMain|
Here are a few things you might not have known about the man behind Bugs Bunny.
David W Brown|
Over the last two decades, some truly astonishing new discoveries have been made, spanning just about every conceivable topic in the biology, behavior, and evolution of the dinosaurs featured in Jurassic Park since the film was released 20 years ago.
Mark Mancini|
Ladies and gentlemen, it’s official: The Norman Bates we all know and love (?) has arrived.
Stacy Conradt|
These lawsuits are so bizarre, they should be put in a muse—oh, wait.
Amanda Green|
Before it was called PBR or even Pabst, the official beer of hipsters, old blue collar Wisconsinites and Frank Booth was brewed under the name Best Select, starting in 1875.
Matt Soniak|
Books have a lot of admirers. Many people love books not only because of what is written in them, but because they're works of art. And people who love things like to name them. Very thoroughly. Let's look at some of the best terms in the book.
Virginia Claire McGuire|
No one knows who pulled the first prank, but it’s safe to say that humans have been hoaxing each other for well over 1000 years. Here are some of the oldest pranks on record.
Julie Winterbottom|
Happy April Fool’s Day! And while today is a good day to be skeptical of any unusual news you hear, do keep in mind that, sometimes, the truth is stranger than pranks.
Jens T Carstensen|
Close perusal of a Wonder loaf’s list of ingredients reveals some 29 tongue-tying components, while the whole grain loaf has five or six, none over two syllables. So why are more heavily processed foods and those with more ingredients typically less expen
Kevin Kampwirth|
The producers of Game of Thrones did the smart thing when they hired language creator David Petersen to work out realistic languages for the show. This season fans will be getting to know two new languages, High and Low Valyrian. But before you start tryi
Arika Okrent|
In 1997, the idea that you could access email (specifically Hotmail) via a web browser was pretty revolutionary. "Even attachments show up!" exclaims the host in this charming segment of 'The Computer Chronicles.'
Chris Higgins|
Does pulling pranks in childhood lead to success later in life? Judging from the youthful shenanigans of these five famous people, the answer might be yes.
Julie Winterbottom|
Are you disgusted, disgruntled and disheveled? Well, unfortunately you’re never going to be gusted, gruntled or sheveled.
Judith Herman|
Until 1907, it was illegal in England for a man to marry the sister of his dead wife.
Arika Okrent|
Minor League baseball has been an American staple for over a century. Among the roughly 245 Minor League teams scattered across the nation, some have acquired some rather unusual names. Here are 11 of the oddest.
Mark Mancini|
Our definition of portability has changed over the years, from 1975's IBM 5100 (what we used to call a "luggable" computer) all the way to today's ultrabooks, which are finally actually "notebook" sized -- and still have halfway decent battery life.
Chris Higgins|
Travelers to Chicago may experience the wind gusts that come off Lake Michigan, get tossed around a bit and think, “So this is why it’s called the Windy City.” The nickname, which dates back to the late 1870s, is deceiving because, literally, Chicago is a
Bryan Dugan|
In the 1950s and 60s, the U.S. Army conducted training exercises using an imaginary enemy named, quite simply, Aggressor. The soldiers assigned to play the part of Aggressor troops had to speak a different language: Esperanto, the language of peace.
Arika Okrent|
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