Mental Floss

LONGFORM









iStock

We're at the beginning of full-fledged gene-editing revolution that has enabled scientists to fashion novel plants and animals with thrilling—and sometimes troubling—ease.

Lina Zeldovich
iStock

At only 3 inches long and weighing about 60 grams, the uterus isn’t a flashy, attention-grabbing organ. But it is pretty amazing.

Lorraine Boissoneault
















The Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Digital Studio

A bizarre medieval manuscript written in a language no one can read has baffled the world’s best cryptologists, stumped the most powerful code-breaking computers, and been written off as a masterful hoax. Can the hive mind finally unlock the secrets of th

Erin McCarthy