Rick Marshall

Follow @rickmarshall

Rick Marshall is a freelance writer, professional geek, occasional photographer, indentured servant to incestuous cats, speedy talker, and obsessive story collector. He's served as a nerd-in-residence at MTV News, IFC, Spike TV, and various other online and on-air outlets. His personal blog can be found at MindPollution.org.

What Do Those Recycling Symbols and Codes Mean?

Earth Day is here again, serving as an annual reminder of the need to reduce, reuse, and recycle our way to a better planet.... READ ON

The Origins of 11 Famous Star Trek Lines

Live long and prosper.... READ ON

What Are The Colored Circles on Food Packages?

There's a lot of information crammed onto food packaging these days, and along with all of the helpful stuff (like nutritional data and ingredients), there's also the mysterious, multicolored row of circles or squares that serves a very important purpose ... for the printer.... READ ON

20 Things You Might Not Know About Your Favorite Liquors

Jack Sparrow has his rum, Ron Burgundy has his scotch, and you probably have your own favorite liquor, too. But how much do you know about your beverage of choice from that magical shelf behind the bar?... READ ON

10 Things You Might Not Know About The Avengers

Everything you need to catch up on before 'Avengers: Age of Ultron.'... READ ON

Q&A: Chris Carter on The X-Files and 'The '90s: The Last Great Decade'

A lot can change in 15 years. National Geographic Channel's upcoming three-part miniseries 'The '90s: The Last Great Decade?' makes that quite apparent, with a look back on the decade that gave us Bill Clinton's presidency, the rise of America Online, the musical stylings of Vanilla Ice, and a spooky little television series called 'The X-Files.'... READ ON

20 Things You Might Not Know About The X-Men and “Days of Future Past”

If the arrival of Days Of Future Past has you thinking more than usual about Marvel's famous mutants, you'll have no shortage of food for thought with this list of 20 things you might not know about the X-Men, the upcoming film, and the story that inspired it.... READ ON

What's the Difference Between Flotsam and Jetsam?

Along with serving as the names of two villainous eels in Disney's animated classic The Little Mermaid, the phrase “flotsam and jetsam” is often used to describe the floating debris found in the aftermath of an accident at sea. And while it might initially seem like a strange moniker for maritime wreckage, there's a very good reason for the two-part terminology.... READ ON

The Reason Why No Photography is Allowed in the Sistine Chapel

Visitors to the chapel will find their experience peppered with terse shouts of “No photo! No video!” from security guards. The prohibition against photography has been in place for several decades now, but the reason behind it has less to do with protecting the art from damaging elements than it has to do with protecting a copyright.... READ ON

15 Things to Know About Popeye on His 85th Anniversary

It was 85 years ago today that one of comics' most famous sailors made his debut . . . and spinach has never been the same.... READ ON

10 Things to Know About Thor

Marvel's god of thunder returns to the big screen this weekend in Thor: The Dark World. Here are a few facts about the Silver Age superhero.... READ ON

7 Things We Should Thank The X-Files For

Along with all of the memorable stories fans are still talking about more than a decade after the show ended its run, The X-Files also gave us a few things to be thankful for that might not be as obvious.... READ ON

11 Movies You Might Not Know Were Based On Comic Books

Sure, everyone knows Iron Man and Superman were comic-book heroes well before they made the jump to the big screen, but there's no shortage of movies out there with secret origins in the world of comics.... READ ON

11 Things to Know About Iron Man

Iron Man 3 opened in theaters Friday. Here's what you need to know about high-tech hero Tony Stark and his armored alter ego.... READ ON

6 Movies That Were Almost Other Movies

With the number of remakes, reboots, and re-imagined movies coming out of Hollywood lately, the industry seems intent on taking everything old and making it new again. And while that's hardly just a recent trend, you might be surprised at some of the films from the last few decades that started out as very different projects, only to have their scripts, characters, and other elements find new life on their way through the development cycle.... READ ON

The Secret Origins of 11 Famous Video Games

Gaming has its fair share of wacky origin stories.... READ ON

8 Real Places That Inspired Superhero Headquarters and Landmarks

Superheroes are everywhere you look these days—and if you're in the right city, the same can be said for their favorite meeting spots. From Avengers Mansion to the Super Friends' Hall of Justice, many of the homes, headquarters, and hangouts of comics' most famous icons were inspired by real-world locations.... READ ON

20 Things You Might Not Know About Your Favorite Liquors

The Origins of 11 Famous Star Trek Lines

Popular on Mentalfloss

MENTAL FLOSS

FLOOR8 12UP 90MIN

FLOOR8 12UP 90MIN