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Mental Floss
Bob Ross said he made over 30,000 paintings in his lifetime. If he didn’t sell them, where did his army of happy clouds go? We’ll let Bob explain:“One of the questions that I hear over and over and over is, ‘What do we do with all these paintings we do o
Lucas Reilly|
Louis Sachar's Sideways Stories From Wayside School series is still a favorite of elementary-age kids, 34 years after the first book hit the shelves. Each of the three books features 30 chapters -- one for each floor of the Wayside School building -- and
Adrienne Crezo|
Installment #27: Beginning in 1910, the general staffs of France and Russia, allied since 1894, held regular talks once a year, alternating between Paris and St. Petersburg, to coordinate their military strategies in case of war with Germany. In June-July
Erik Sass|
Your iPhone is not living up to its full potential. Sure, everyone loves posting pictures of their cats to Instagram, and the new RadioLab app is awesome. But we're living in the future! Why not use those tiny computers we're all carrying around for somet
Matt Soniak|
Super-hero comics have provided some brilliant cliffhangers over the decades. Choosing 10 of the best, most significant cliffhangers is a tough job, so let's narrow it down to the "Big Two" comic book companies, Marvel and DC Comics. Between them, they ha
Mark Juddery|
More than any other bodily injury, getting hit in the testicles is probably what every man dreads most. Of all the soft, fleshy spots on the human body, none register the same kind of incapacitating, end-of-the-world pain as the family jewels.
Matt Soniak|
Medals were awarded for architecture, music, painting, and sculpture.
Scott Allen|
When it came time to collect their medals, these athletes said, "No thanks."
Scott Allen|
You wouldn’t know it with all the hype surrounding the Tokyo Olympics right now, but there are things more important than winning a medal. Just ask these athletes, who had good reason to sell their hard-earned precious metal.
Stacy Conradt|
There are two popularly cited origins for the phrase "let the cat out of the bag," but neither is very clearly recorded as leading to it.
Matt Soniak|
In 1793, the French Revolution was in full swing. Royal sympathizers—nobles, military officers, clergy, and other aristocrats—were guaranteed a sharp kiss from the guillotine. Frightened, thousands of aristocrats fled to neighboring countries like Austria
Lucas Reilly|
What was your neighborhood corner drugstore Back In The Day, and is it still around?
Kara Kovalchik|
Usually the government sticks to reality, but there are a number of times where agencies have investigated or weighed in on more mythical ideas.
Jason Plautz|
1. "Romeo and Juliet" – Dire Straits Dolly Parton, Steve Forbert, Elvis Costello, Michael Penn... These are just a few of many artists who've referenced the name Romeo in their songs. But this beautiful tune from Mark Knopfler stands out for its streetwis
Bill DeMain|
NASA has been waking up astronauts using music since the Apollo Program. Sometimes those wakeup calls get pretty weird. 1. STS-111 - "I Got You Babe" from Groundhog Day On June 19, 2002, the crew of the Space Shuttle Endeavour awoke to a tinny rendit
Chris Higgins|
Installment #26: One of the big questions facing historians of the First World War is the role played by popular nationalism in the outbreak of hostilities. While conventional historical wisdom has stated that “most” ordinary Europeans embraced nationalis
Erik Sass|
Image credit: Daniel R. Tobias/Wikimedia CommonsI was working at Tower Records back in the late 1980s, when the compact disc started replacing the vinyl LP. Beyond the arguments over the analog vs. digital sound (which continue to this day) and the higher
Bill DeMain|
“Bladorthin the Grey” just doesn’t have the same ring to it as “Gandalf the Grey,” does it? Here are the stories of Gandalf and some other famous characters who experienced an identity change before publication.
Stacy Conradt|
Installment #25: Turkish fortunes took a sharp turn for the worse in 1911-1912, as the ailing multinational Ottoman Empire was first attacked by Italy, then assailed by an Albanian uprising, while the members of the Balkan League plotted to liberate their
Erik Sass|
It is now a deadly weapon in Mario Kart and a slapstick comedy staple, but how did the banana peel gets its reputation as such a threatening object?A Danger to SocietyBefore the discovery of its comedic potential, the banana skin was considered a real pub
Laura Turner Garrison|
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