Mental Floss

ALL STORIES





Love your liver.

Not only is the liver your largest internal organ; it is in charge of hundreds of bodily processes ranging from fighting infection to manufacturing proteins and hormones to helping your blood clot.

Jordan Rosenfeld




Airfares are often cheaper on the holiday itself.

While we can’t promise that your journey to grandma’s house this year will be enjoyable, we know of a few travel tips to make it less stressful.

Emily Petsko








Building snowmen is not a new winter activity.

From children decorating them with hats and carrot noses to giant sculptures of fan-favorite characters, where there is snow, there will be snowmen. Here’s a brief history of why we build them.

Beth Robertson




Free-range chickens.

Bird flu is one of the reasons egg prices have skyrocketed. Here’s what else you should know about the current outbreak of the H5N1 virus among U.S. poultry and dairy cows.

Nick Keppler




Grab your magnifying glass.

We give you an obscure word with four definitions—one correct, three made up. Can you identify the correct one?

Ellen Gutoskey
The Parthenon sits atop Athens’s Acropolis.

The ancient Acropolis has loomed over the Greek city of Athens for more than 3000 years as a defensive citadel, temple complex, weather station, and even a site of resistance against the Nazis.

Allison C Meier