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Turkey
What’s That Thing That Hangs Off a Turkey’s Face?
mentalfloss.com - BY Matt Soniak
That thing is called a snood. And it's there to let the other turkeys know that its owner is kind of a big deal. When a male turkey—known as a …
Smart Shopping | Mental Floss
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Biology
What's the Difference Between Stuffing and Dressing?
mentalfloss.com - BY Jake Rossen
For carbohydrate consumers, nothing completes a Thanksgiving meal like stuffing—shovelfuls of bread, celery, mushrooms, and other ingredients that …
Grammar
40 Dandy D-Words To Deepen Your Vocabulary
mentalfloss.com - BY Paul Anthony Jones
It’s thought that the earliest ancestor of our humble letter D was an Ancient Egyptian hieroglyph representing a door, which is where D get its …
Tetris
Can You Spot the Pumpkin Pie in This Thanksgiving Spread?
mentalfloss.com - BY Shaunacy Ferro
When Nintendo released their handheld Game Boy system in the U.S. and Japan in 1989, the first game most users experimented with was Tetris. Bundled …
Los Angeles
Los Angeles Philharmonic to Perform a Piece of Music that Involves Dropping Melons on the Ground
mentalfloss.com - BY Lucas Reilly
This weekend, the Los Angeles Philharmonic will perform a piece of music that involves dropping melons from a great height and listening to the sound …
Proforma
Is the Confidentiality Disclaimer at the Bottom of an Email Legally Binding?
mentalfloss.com - BY Austin Thompson
For most of us, a day doesn’t go by without receiving a notice that “This email and attached documents may contain confidential information” and that …
Star Wars
Billie Lourd Shares What (Very Little) She Can About Star Wars: Episode IX
mentalfloss.com - BY Natalie Zamora
Nearly nothing is known about the final film in the latest Star Wars series, except that J.J. Abrams, who helmed The Force Awakens, will be returning …
Los Angeles
A 24-Hour Pee-wee's Playhouse Marathon is Coming to IFC on Thanksgiving Day
mentalfloss.com - BY Jennifer M Wood
Today's secret word is: AHHHH! If the thought of talking politics with your drunk uncle this Thanksgiving is too much for you to bear, might we …
Sesame Street
C Is for Comfort: Bombas Just Launched a Sesame Street Sock Line
mentalfloss.com - BY Shaunacy Ferro
You know that warm, fuzzy feeling you get when you think about the Muppets? You can now wear it on your feet. Bombas just released a limited-edition …
Green Bean Casserole
5 Simple Ways to Upgrade Your Green Bean Casserole
mentalfloss.com - BY Michele Debczak
Green bean casserole became a fixture of Thanksgiving spreads shortly after Dorcas Reilly invented the dish in 1955. The classic recipe, which …
Dining Rooms
'Turkey on the Table' Helps You Give Thanks—and Fight Hunger
mentalfloss.com - BY Michele Debczak
Between planning a menu and figuring out how to thaw a 20-pound turkey in 48 hours, hosts may not have time to think about much else this …
Albert Einstein
A Letter Written by Albert Einstein in 1922 Predicted the Rise of the Nazis
mentalfloss.com - BY Shaunacy Ferro
As a Jew living in Germany in the 1920s, Albert Einstein had an up-close view of the Nazis’ rise to power. As early as 1922, he could see turbulent …
Bungee Jumping
What Are Your Chances of Dying from Everyday Activities? Chart Shows The Risks
mentalfloss.com - BY Emily Petsko
Many of the things that cause people great distress—such as spiders, sharks, plane travel, and elevators—are considered "irrational" fears for a …
9 Not-So-Pesky Facts About Termites
mentalfloss.com - BY Shaunacy Ferro
Termites get a lot of hate for chewing through buildings, but the little creatures are far more interesting—and ecologically valuable—than we often …
Game of Thrones
What Does Game of Thrones Have In Store for Grey Worm and Missandei's Relationship?
mentalfloss.com - BY Natalie Zamora
When you think of Game of Thrones, chances are you imagine Jon Snow and Daenerys Targaryen, or Cersei and Tyrion Lannister. However, there are plenty …
Los Angeles
How the Los Angeles Zoo Protects Its Animals During Wildfires and Other Emergencies
mentalfloss.com - BY Emily Petsko
It’s hard enough to evacuate a family of three when disaster strikes, let alone large groups of frightened animals. However, many zoos have detailed …
Holiday Travel
10 Tips for Stress-Free Holiday Travel
mentalfloss.com - BY Emily Petsko
Anyone who has traveled during the holidays knows how taxing it can be. Traffic is slow, airport security lines seem to move even slower, and your …
Thanksgiving Dinner
The Average Cost of Thanksgiving Dinner May Be Less Than You Think
mentalfloss.com - BY Jake Rossen
Money can’t buy happiness, but it can buy a giant bird and lots of things to stuff inside of it. According to USA Today, the average cost of …
Café
A Free Cup Share Program Is Coming to Coffee Shops in Boulder, Colorado
mentalfloss.com - BY Michele Debczak
Paper coffee cups are wasteful, taking decades to break down in a landfill after they're used for just a small part of someone's morning. But they're …
Ben Affleck
Early Aquaman Screenings Are Yet Another Amazon Prime Member Perk
mentalfloss.com - BY Natalie Zamora
The DC Extended Universe's next film Aquaman is a little over a month away from landing in theaters, but for some lucky fans that premiere date has …
Filmmaking
10 Remakes That Are Better Than the Original Movie
mentalfloss.com - BY Scott Beggs
You can hear the collective groan from all the way across the internet whenever Hollywood announces a new remake. The success rate isn’t great. …
Kickstarter
This Modular Bike Goes From Stroller to Trike to Two-Wheeler as Your Child Grows
mentalfloss.com - BY Michele Debczak
When kids outgrow their bikes, most parents settle for buying an entirely new model and leaving the old one to collect dust in the garage. The …
11 Secrets of Butterball's Turkey Talk-Line Operators
mentalfloss.com - BY Emily Petsko
Butterball’s Turkey Talk-Line started small. Their first holiday season in 1981, a team of six home economists answered 11,000 turkey-related …
Can You Pick Out the Weird Law That's Totally Real?
mentalfloss.com
Killer Whales
This Live Stream Lets You Eavesdrop on Endangered Killer Whales' Conversations
mentalfloss.com - BY Emily Petsko
Southern resident killer whales, which are usually found off the coasts of Washington, Oregon, and British Columbia, are an endangered species. If …
No Joe: The Time Coffee Was Banned in Prussia
mentalfloss.com - BY Lucas Reilly
In the late 18th century, Prussia's King Frederick the Great (officially Frederick II) blacklisted coffee and encouraged his royal subjects to drink …
China
Why 1 Million People Live in Cold War-Era Bunkers Under the Streets of Beijing
mentalfloss.com - BY Lucas Reilly
In Beijing, anywhere between 100,000 to one million people live underground in old bomb shelters. Dubbed the shuzu, or "rat tribe," these subterranean …
Fantastic Beasts
The Elder Wand from Harry Potter Will Be Surprisingly Important in Fantastic Beasts 2
mentalfloss.com - BY Natalie Zamora
For about a year now, Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald has been using an image of the Elder Wand in promotional teases, as pointed out by …
David Bowie
When David Bowie Launched His Own Internet Service Provider
mentalfloss.com - BY Jake Rossen
There was a surprise waiting for Canadian buyers of The Best of David Bowie 1974/1979, a greatest hits collection by the musician that was released in …