From The Archive

5 Adult-Friendly Food Fights Around the World

1. The Battle of

The Toadstool Exchange: An Examination of 5 Video Game Currencies

Most of us will spend a great deal of real money on video games, wherein we can spend a great deal of fictional money—only for much cooler things that are more likely to explode. Here are five video game currencies, a general appraisal of their respective

The Time Andy Kaufman Wrestled a Bunch of Women

On October 20, 1979, Andy Kaufman made his ninth appearance on Saturday Night Live. Previous audiences had laughed at his oddball routines that tread the line between comedy and performance art. Once, he led a spirited sing-a-long to “Old MacDonald Had A

When His Project Was Canceled, an Unemployed Programmer Kept Sneaking Into Apple to Finish the Job

When an Apple programmer’s project got canceled, he didn’t despair. He just kept sneaking into the office until the program was finished.

How Drinking Can Solve All Your (Word Association) Problems

Ryan McVay/Photodisc Here's a gem for your next round of barstool trivia: a recent study shows that people who have a couple drinks solve brainteasers faster—and get more correct answers—than their sober

Armchair Field Trip: Iowa's Stonehenge

Have you ever wanted to speed across a bridge that’s half a mile long and 13 stories in the air, pretending you’re in Tron? Yeah, me too. Good news: the next time you’re in Madrid, Iowa, stop by the High Trestle Trail Bridge and you totally

What's the Difference Between a Street and a Road?

Reader Brit asks: "Is there any rhyme or reason to calling a road an avenue, a boulevard, a street or a lane? Is it just at the discretion of whoever names the

The Early Jobs of 24 Famous Writers

Everyone knows that Stephen King was a janitor and Ransom Riggs shared creepy old photos on mentalfloss.com. What did some other famous writers do before their big breaks?

Do You Own The Space Above Your House?

Cuius est solum, eius est usque ad coelum et ad inferos means "whoever owns the soil, it is theirs up to Heaven and down to Hell."

6 Summer Camps for Exceedingly Wealthy Children

For many, summer camp means a week sleeping in a cabin that doubles as a sweat lodge, spider-infested communal showers, and swimming in a scummy pond. But if you have lots and lots of money, you have options.1. ActionQuestTypically about $5,170 for 5 week

Who Invented the Knuckleball?

RAY STUBBLEBINE/Reuters/Landov New York Mets pitcher R.A. Dickey, the only active major leaguer who throws a knuckleball, hasn’t allowed an earned run in 42 2/3 innings and recently became the first pitcher since 1988 to throw back-to-back one-hitters. T

Allen Watkin from London, UK, Wikimedia Commons // CC BY-SA 2.0

What Happened To All Those Chargers Destroyed in Dukes of Hazzard?

Over seven seasons, the General Lee went airborne more than 150 times. Although it seemed fine on screen, the General rarely survived a jump. Warner Brothers totaled an average of two Chargers per episode.

10 Ideas for Antiquating Your Modern Technology

Modern technology is amazing and efficient. But there is something to be said for the giddy nostalgia created by products from the past. Thankfully, there are a lot of ways to combine the two experiences. 1. Rotary iPhone Dialer

5 News Stories That Sound Like Horror Movie Plots

Image: Hemera | Thinkstock The media has become obsessed with the so-called “Miami Zombie” case, and for good reason. It sounds like something ripped straight out of a horror movie and brought to life. But these kinds of things seem to occur with a prett

A Day Trip to Chicago

What do you do with only one day in Chicago? My family recently went there for a biannual reunion that I explained in a similar post a few years ago. Since then, the families have grown by one husband (mine) and five stepchildren (although only the younge

Sex Toys for Winter Tomatoes

Tomatoes image via Shutterstock If you take a bunch of very smart, passionate science geeks, deprive them of sleep, fill them with booze, and put them in a room together, the conversations can take some pretty wild turns. That's what happened earlier thi

There's a Little Bit of Belgium in Every U.S. Dollar Bill

by Albena Shkodrova/Latitude

5 Tips for the War of 1812 Bicentennial Party You're Probably Planning

Today marks the bicentennial of the start of the War of 1812. Here are a few tips for throwing a 200th birthday

The Origin of "It's 10 PM. Do You Know Where Your Children Are?"

"It's 10 PM. Do you know where your children are?" This ominous question, somberly intoned just prior to the local news, was eventually parodied by a multitude of stand-up comedians, novelty song artists, and horror movie posters. But the original intent

How Aunt Jemima Changed U.S. Trademark Law

In the late 19th century, R.T. Davis purchased a struggling milling company that put out a ready-made pancake mix branded with an older, matronly black woman in an apron and kerchief. Aunt Jemima's appearance on the package implied long hours in a souther

5 Great Things With Unexpected Downsides

Every cloud has a silver lining. We hate to rain on your parade, but it seems the opposite is true, too. Here are five allegedly good things that aren’t all they’re cracked up to be. 1. Being

5 Fictional Bears and Whether They'd Kill You

We’ve ranked our favorite fictional bears by your likelihood of surviving an unplanned run-in with them.

11 Wars That Lasted Way Longer Than They Should Have

Thanks to lost paperwork, diplomatic technicalities, or just plain forgetting they had declared war in the first place, many countries remained in a state of war long after the actual fighting had stopped. 1. Roman Republic vs. Carthaginian Republic – 2,

11 Classic Tongue Twisters

You guys are still into tongue twisters, right? I didn't want to admit it. Even for me, it just seemed too childish. But recently a Jason Mraz-tweeted tongue twister had me delighting in my inability to enunciate “Irish wristwatch.” I texted it to all m

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