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Mental Floss
1. Nose
Adrienne Crezo|
There are monsters all around us -or at least the legends of monsters. Last week we saw some of the monsters of Asia. Now here are some of the scariest monsters of Europe. 1.
Miss Cellania|
One of the most persistent myths in American history is that European explorers really got one over on the Native Americans by purchasing the entire island of Manhattan—where property has averaged $1000+ per square foot over the last few years—for a measl
Matt Soniak|
FBI.gov By most accounts, Ted Bundy was handsome, charming, and intelligent. He was also violent, manipulative, amoral—and exhibited many of the hallmarks of a psychopath. Psychologists use an extensive list of traits to identify psychopaths, and now the
Meghan Holohan|
Installment #38: With an international naval arms race stoking paranoia on all sides, in 1912 ship designers around the world brought their “A” game with designs for the biggest, most powerful ships the world had ever seen, including the Royal Navy’s Quee
Erik Sass|
We previously covered some of the many alternate histories out there. Here are seven more intriguing ways the world could be completely different. 1. What if the Romans won the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest? Effect: No one would speak English. Explanat
Mark Juddery|
While museums dedicated to Spam and barbed wire are strange in their specificity, some museums are just plain bizarre in their subject matter. Here are some of the weirdest museums ever curated. 1. Leila’s Hair
Jill Harness|
When I was a kid, my parents often tried to sell me on the idea that carrots were good for my eyes—and if I wanted to avoid vision correction in the future, I would eat them now. But after I was fitted for my first pair of glasses in fourth grade, they dr
Matt Soniak|
Though fingerprints are handy for identifying perps, biologically, scientists still aren't quite sure what our fingerprints are for. But as they test different hypotheses, they're getting closer to the answer—and learning some pretty cool stuff in the pro
Matt Soniak|
From Star Trek to Ren and Stimpy to Van Der Graaf Generator’s “Pioneers Over C,” pop culture and fiction are filled with men, women, and animals who have gone excitedly beyond the bounds of the Earth ... only to lose their grips on reality and mentally br
Matt Soniak|
As we’ve been seeing lately, everything politicians have done since birth ends up being in the news—especially during election time. Game show appearances are no exception, so check out these seven politico contestants. Some did surprisingly well; others
Stacy Conradt|
Image credit: Duke.eduThere was a time when almost every university student was a sophomore.  Well, a sophister, to be exact, but that’s where the word “sophomore” originated. A sophist was a wise man (derived from the Greek word sophos), so when Henry VI
Kara Kovalchik|
Installment #37: As September 1912 drew to an end, the Balkan Peninsula was hurtling towards war. Law and order had collapsed in the Ottoman Empire, where the Albanian rebellion triggered waves of ethnic violence pitting Christian Slavs against Muslim Alb
Erik Sass|
Wikimedia Commons “It was in the month of February, 1814, that I obtained the first sight of this noble bird, and never shall I forget the delight which it gave me.” That’s John James Audubon, the American naturalist and artist, writing in The Birds of
Matt Soniak|
Making it in Hollywood is a tough game. For every success story, there are a thousand failures. A vast majority of hopefuls understand the odds and still choose to go for it. But some have a tougher time dealing with the competition than
Eddie Deezen|
Every country has eerie tales of monsters from hundreds, or even thousands, of years ago. There are many such stories from Asia; here are a few of those monsters you might want to tell the kids about the next time you have a campfire on a dark and spooky
Miss Cellania|
Because being a secret agent isn’t cool enough, spymasters tend to build elaborate headquarters buildings with really great nicknames. Here are a few headquarters known for their vodka martinis, Aston Martins, and Walther pistols.1.
David W Brown|
Wikimedia Commons “The dream of a great poet.” “A fairy tale.” “Delirious ravings.” “Moving crust disease and wandering pole plague.” “Germanic pseudoscience.” In the early 20th century, all these terms—and dozens of other equally colorful ones—were
Matt Soniak|
There are many examples of traditions that build camaraderie in the military, but few are as well-respected as the practice of carrying a challenge coin—a small medallion or token that signifies a person is a member of an organization. Even though challen
Rob Lammle|
You've probably heard by now that Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling has a new book releasing this week, and it is definitely not for children. But Rowling isn't the first well-known author of kids' books to take a stab at writing for adults. Here are 12 o
Adrienne Crezo|
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