Mental Floss

ALL STORIES

Happy 2025!

Every time a new year rolls around, people set out to better themselves. But why do we make these promises to ourselves, and where did this tradition come from? We can start by blaming the ancient Babylonians.

Shanna Yehlen








Body fat is not just something to get rid of. It plays important roles in the human body, from regulating metabolism to storing energy.

Jordan Rosenfeld




Let’s celebrate another year in the books with a look back at how our knowledge grew over the past 12 months.

mentalfloss .com, Stacy Conradt




Music and lyrics of ‘Auld Lang Syne.’

On New Year’s Eve, after the ball has dropped, revelers queue up “Auld Lang Syne”—that song that makes you cry, even though you don’t understand it and know almost none of the words.

Caitlin Schneider
Can you decipher this twisted tune?

It’s time to play Tune Twist, where we translate the lyrics of popular songs into multiple languages and then back into English. Can you figure out what the song is, or who performed it?

mentalfloss .com