Mental Floss

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Grapes have a long agricultural history.

Wine grapes and table grapes are a huge agricultural asset. It's no wonder that the humble grape is among the world's largest fruit crops.

Indi Bains


The pattern is named after the European dance craze, but what exactly the dots have to do with polka is a bit of a mystery.

Shaunacy Ferro








A reconstruction of Ötzi the Iceman at the South Tyrol Archaeological Museum in Italy.

Nicknamed Ötzi the Iceman, the mummified man was around 40–50 years old when he died in the Copper Age. Here are 13 surprising facts about him.

Kristina Killgrove
Phone numbers with letters look like gibberish to most people making a phone call today.

You may have noticed these weird phone numbers while watching reruns of your favorite ’50s-era TV show—and though they look like gibberish to modern phone-users, they were perfectly normal at the time.

Nick Greene


How to say “hello” (or something that roughly translates to a greeting) in five conlangs.

A conlang is a constructed language, where someone has intentionally created its grammar, vocabulary, and phonology. Here are five you can learn.

Ciara McLaren




Is disaster about to strike?

An exploding corpse, a 45-minute car chase, and a horse-related mishap that led to a century-long royal tradition. In this episode of The List Show, host Justin Dodd covers funerals gone wrong.

Bethel Afful


Vocal fry predates the Kardashians.

Vocal fry describes a specific sound quality caused by the movement of the vocal folds—and it’s nothing new.

Arika Okrent