Mental Floss

BIG QUESTIONS

The ancient art of sword swallowing may seem like some sort of elaborate trick—but it’s very, very real (and very, very dangerous).

Watching a scary movie can definitely send shivers down your spine—but why?

You’re watching a scary movie or the music swells during your favorite song—the shiver up and down your spine is your body responding to a range of emotions.

They haven’t always been enemies.

Their (often literal) blood feud is a relatively modern creation. So how did vampires and werewolves end up at each other’s throats?

Why so slow?

You know planes cover hundreds of miles per hour. So why doesn't it look like they do?

How and when to wash jeans is a debate for the ages.

Some denim devotees never wash. Others find that disgusting. The head of Levi's weighs in.

Koalas do kind of look like bears.

If you were an 18th-century settler in Australia with no knowledge of marsupials, you just might decide to call a koala a ‘bear,’ right?

The answer lies in their chromosomal makeup.

Someone’s jonesing for a sweet snack.

Nowadays, we use jones to express an intense craving for something. But it used to refer specifically to drugs.

It’s hard to put a price tag on home.

Earth may be the most precious place we have, but it isn't priceless. We know because one scientist did the math.

Karl Aspelin, Public Domain // Wikimedia Commons

As is often the case when you look back into history, there’s more than one possible answer. But one of the leading contenders has a fairly predictable culprit: the Puritans.

Prepared horseradish sometimes requires more preparation.

Prepared horseradish and horseradish sauce aren’t the same thing.

“Nutmeg State” isn’t actually Connecticut’s official nickname.

Technically, it’s not. Connecticut’s “official nickname” is the “Constitution State.”

Are you not up to snuff when it comes to knowing the origin of ‘up to snuff’? We can help you with that.

Are you not up to snuff when it comes to knowing the origin of ‘up to snuff’? We can help you with that.

The hood ornament for a Jaguar.

Cars used to sport exquisite pieces of art on their hoods. What happened?

Rock-hard cookies are bad enough without the presence of actual rocks.

A bacteria-related food recall is troubling but understandable. It’s a little weirder when one involves golf balls.

No cheese here.

The moon-made-of-cheese rumor may have started with a hungry wolf and a crafty fox.

They've never been happier.

What is an Irish goodbye—and why is it called that?

She probably did a lot of scratching before settling down.

Your dog’s instinct to furiously dig at their bed before falling asleep would make a lot more sense in the wild.

Is Halloween strictly for kids, or is an age cap warranted?

Some communities have ordinances banning teens from knocking on doors. But are they justified?

You rang?

Cats and “Pspsps” go together like toddlers and the crinkling wrapper of a candy bar that you were trying to eat in secret. What gives?

This is not tin foil.

Tin foil and aluminum foil are not the same thing.

The eyes have it.

The shape of an animal’s pupils is a clue to its place in the food chain.

"10-4"

“10-4” isn’t any quicker than saying “OK.” But it is a storied trucker tradition.

The words ‘fall’ and ‘autumn’ appeared around the same time in Great Britain, but only one of the seasonal names is still used there today.