Mental Floss

ALL STORIES









Vienna’s Wienflussportal, showing the spot where the Vienna River emerges from its underground course.

Discover the hidden rivers buried beneath cities around the world. From Moscow to Tokyo, explore the history and modern efforts to reopen these forgotten waterways.

Julie Fogerson


The 1960s gave us a lot of marvy slang still in use today.

Discover the most iconic slang from the 1960s and how it shaped modern language. From 'flower power' to 'groovy,' these terms are the linguistic legacy of the decade.

Jake Rossen




Getty Images

All Chinese New Year celebrations are celebrations of the Lunar New Year, but not all Lunar New Year celebrations are traditionally Chinese.

Colin Ainsworth


Atmospheric rivers slammed Southern California in February 2024 and caused widespread floods and mudslides.

Explore the role of these weather systems in transporting moisture from the tropics and spreading it worldwide.

Dennis Mersereau








Cleavon Little and Gene Wilder star in 'Blazing Saddles' (1974).

Mel Brooks’s audacious comedy was the first movie to incorporate audible flatulence (though the offending noises were muted when the film aired on television).

Mark Mancini