October 2016 – Page 24

October 24, 2016

Newsletter Item for (87717): How Too Much Tech Can Hurt Productivity

Headline:

How Too Much Tech Can Hurt Productivity

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Bad news for habitual email and text-checkers: You’re probably not multitasking as efficiently at work as you think you are.

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Live Smarter

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How Too Much Tech Can Hurt Productivity

October 24, 2016

Newsletter Item for (81819): (Another) 9 Outrageous Movie Theories You Didn’t See Coming

Headline:

9 Outrageous Movie Theories You Didn’t See Coming

mfna_dek:

Was Dorothy actually The Wicked Witch of the East in The Wizard of Oz? And was Jake Sully brainwashed in Avatar? Here are 10 outrageous (albeit well-substantiated) movie theories you didn’t see coming.

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Movies

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(Another) 9 Outrageous Movie Theories You Didn’t See Coming

October 24, 2016

You’ve Got To See Monday’s Best Amazon Deals

Smart Shopping Team

filed under: shopping

Image credit:

amazon / istock

As a recurring feature, our team combs the Web and shares some amazing Amazon deals we’ve turned up. Here’s what caught our eye today, October 24.

Mental Floss has affiliate relationships with certain retailers, including Amazon, and may receive a small percentage of any sale. But we only get commission on items you buy and don’t return, so we’re only happy if you’re happy. Good luck deal hunting!

October 24, 2016 – 2:20pm

Amazon Product Id:

B01FT4Y6CE

October 24, 2016

Human Noise Keeps Animals From Recognizing the Scent of Danger

Kate Horowitz

filed under: animal behavior, animal defenses, Animals, environment

Image credit:

BS Thurner Hof via Wikimedia Commons // CC BY-SA 3.0

Picture this: you’re driving somewhere you’ve never been before, blasting your favorite tunes. As you approach your destination and start checking house numbers, your hand reaches for the dial and turns the radio down. Without even realizing it, you’ve decided to redirect your attention from sounds to sights. Now imagine that your passenger has interfered. They’ve turned the radio all the way up and opened all the windows, filling the car with the roar of traffic and wind as you’re trying to focus. Harder now, isn’t it? And it isn’t just us; scientists say mongooses exposed to traffic noise overlook crucial clues from their other senses—clues that could mean the difference between life and death. Their findings were published today in the journal Current Biology.

We’ve known for a long time that pollution and urbanization are bad news for everyone. Much of our research has focused on the physical effects like smog, water contamination, and habitat destruction. We haven’t paid too much attention to the toxic effects of too much noise until recently, but what we’ve learned is troubling.

Studies have shown that exposure to anthropogenic, or human-made, noise causes intense stress for animals, can interfere with their communication, and may even keep them from migrating and having sex. All of these issues could mess with a species’ chances of survival in the long run.

The short-term effects have been less understood, says biologist Amy Morris-Drake of the University of Bristol. She and her colleagues decided to test the immediate consequences of noise on one species, the dwarf mongoose (Helogale parvula), whose South African habitat is increasingly bounded by cities and roads.

The dwarf mongoose has many predators, including jackals, hyenas, civets, servals, honey badgers, wildcats, bigger mongooses, and an assortment of reptiles. The key to survival, consequently, is constant olfactory vigilance: sniffing the air for the scent of predator poop.

The research team headed into mongoose territory with audio recordings of traffic noise and Ziploc baggies of poop from servals, wildcats, and giraffes. (Because giraffes present no threat to mongooses, their poop was used as a control group.) The researchers set out the poop and played their road sounds, watching the mongooses to see how they would respond.

The results were not encouraging. Exposure to traffic noises significantly decreased the mongooses’ vigilance. They spent less time investigating the predator poop; they were less likely to scan the area for potential threats; and they were less likely to retreat to the entrance of their burrow to prepare for an attack. If the scientist-provided poop, and therefore the threat, had been real, those mongooses would have found themselves in significant danger.

“Our study suggests that noise pollution can have a negative effect in terms of information use,” said co-author Andy Radford. “Given the demonstrated effects, considering the interactions among multiple sensory channels is critically important if we are to understand fully the consequences of human-induced environmental change.”

Know of something you think we should cover? Email us at tips@mentalfloss.com.

October 24, 2016 – 12:01pm

October 24, 2016

11 Fun Halloween Projects (Beyond Jack O’Lanterns) You Can Do With Your Kids

Miss Cellania

filed under: halloween, kids, Miss Cellania

Image credit:

My Kids’ Adventures

Halloween is lots of fun for kids, from decorating a pumpkin to trick-or-treating. But there are plenty of other Halloween projects you can do in between. Here are some fun family activities for children of all ages.

1. TOILET PAPER ROLL FRANKENSTEIN’S MONSTER

No Time for Flash Cards

Your toddler probably isn’t old enough to know about Frankenstein, but this simple and adorable project is fun anyway. All you need are a toilet paper roll, some markers or paint, golf tees for the bolts, and a couple of googly eyes. See how it’s done at No Time For Flash Cards.

2. HALLOWEEN HAIR GEL SUNCATCHERS

Happy Hooligans

These days, parents often use ziplock bags to keep fingerpaint contained. Jackie Currie at Happy Hooligans adapted that idea to create suncatchers using translucent hair gel. Kids put a little hair gel in a sandwich bag along with a couple of drops of food coloring and small Halloween or fall items, then mush it all together for mess-less mayhem (as long as the bag is properly closed). The translucent gel lets the kids clearly see the decorative additions, and the sun shines right through when the bags are taped to a window.

3. SPIDER SUCKERS

I Heart Naptime

Dress up your lollipops for trick-or-treaters or a Halloween party by making them into spiders! All you need are some pipe cleaners, googly eyes, scissors, glue, and spherical sucks like Tootsiepops. Cut the pipe cleaners in half, wrap them around the lollipop stick, glue on the googly eyes, and voila: a spider! The complete instructions are available at I Heart Naptime.

4. MINIATURE MUMMY

Ramisa Tasnim

It’s easy to make miniature mummies—just use your kids’ toys! It’s as easy as wrapping a Barbie doll or action figure in gauze (you can see the complete instructions here). The finished mummy can be attached to a wreath, or you can string several of them together to create a spooky garland.

5. EXPLODING PEEP GEYSERS

Housing a Forest

Grab some packages of ghost-shaped Peeps and a plastic bottle for this fun experiment. Cut the top off of the bottle, drop in the Peeps, and pop it in the microwave—then ask your kids what they predict what will happen to the marshmallows once you turn the microwave on. Hit start and watch the marshmallow expand right out out the bottle, like supernatural ectoplasm. The finished product is not only a mess, but a hot mess, though it’s apparently easy to clean up.

6. MUMMY DOGS

scoochmaroo via Instructables

Making yummy mummy hot dogs for dinner is simple enough for even young children: They just need to wrap hot dogs in crescent roll dough. If the wrapping is a little raggedy, it just makes the mummies spookier!

7. FLYING GHOST ROCKETS

Crystal Underwood

To pull off this fun project, you’ll need clear film canisters—with spooky ghost faces drawn on in black marker—cornstarch, water, and Alka-Seltzer. Add the cornstarch and water to the canisters, mixing well; next, drop in a piece of Alka-Seltzer, pop the top of the canister on, and flip the “ghost” over to rest on the top. Stand back and watch as the ghosts go flying! You can find step-by-step instructions here.

8. HALLOWEEN BOWLING SET

evite

Sure, this DIY bowling set is Halloween-themed, but it’s fun enough to play with year round. The six 9-inch-tall pins are cut from 4.5 feet of 1×4-inch wood. After sanding down the edges, you can decorate them as whatever spooky creature you’d like using googly eyes, construction paper, and markers. Players bowl using a bouncy ball painted to look like an eye.

9. HOMEMADE SLIME

My Kids’ Adventures

If your kids are old enough to keep the mess in one room, make your own slime for gooey, squishy fun! Steve Spangler gives us five different recipes for slime, from the classic borax recipe to shaving cream slime, depending on how ambitious you are and what you want the finished product to be. One will glow in the dark under a blacklight, as pictured above, and one is even edible!

10. FRANKENWORMS

Gummy worms come alive in this Halloween science project. It’s the old baking soda and vinegar volcano trick, without the mess of an eruption—and they’re a great trick for any Halloween party. Cut standard gummy worms lengthwise at least four times, then drop them into a cup that contains a baking soda and water solution; let sit for 15 minutes. Then, carefully remove the worms from the baking soda solution and put them in a jar of vinegar and watch the magic happen. The reaction of baking soda with vinegar creates bubbles of carbon dioxide that will make the worms move and even float.

11. MAD SCIENCE TEST TUBE RACK

John Park // CC BY-NC-SA 3.0

The test tubes in this rack contain water mixed with fluorescent pigments, lit by a blacklight—and, if you feel like setting up a microcontroller, you can even make them blink creepily. The instructions by John Park at Adafruit take you through building the rack (with or without wiring), mixing the potions, and controlling the lights. Your child will want to keep this as a bedroom lamp forever.

October 24, 2016 – 12:00pm

October 24, 2016

US election day is always held on a Tuesday…

US election day is always held on a Tuesday because in 1845 farmers often needed a full day to travel by horse-drawn vehicles to the county seat to vote. Farmers would leave Monday, vote on Tuesday and be back in time for market day, which was on Wednesday.

October 24, 2016

Charles Boycott, an English land agent…

Charles Boycott, an English land agent, was so hated by the community he became a verb.

October 24, 2016

Girl Scout Cookie Cereal Is Coming Next Year

Michele Debczak

filed under: Food

January marks a special time for baked goods enthusiasts, as it’s the start of Girl Scout cookie season. In 2017, fans of Thin Mints and Samoas will be able to enjoy their favorite treats for breakfast as well as dessert. A new line of cereal from General Mills will feature the classic Girl Scout cookie flavors, Thrillist reports.

The announcement was made last week after the Instagram account Candy Hunting posted two stock photos from the cereal line, showing Thin Mint and Caramel Crunch (or Samoas or Caramel DeLites, depending on where you live) varieties. General Mills confirmed to Thrillist that the cereal is indeed the real thing, and that Girl Scout cookie devotees can expect to see boxes on shelves in January.

The Girl Scouts of America have collaborated with major food brands in the past: In 2012 they launched a line of Nestle Crunch candy bars and before that they teamed up with Edy’s (or Dreyer’s in other parts of the country) to create a Girl Scout cookie-flavored line of ice cream. Fans who prefer to consume their cookies in cookie form can look forward to the return of the classic treats in 2017, as well as a new s’mores-flavored addition to the lineup.

[h/t Thrillist]

All images: Candy Hunting/Instagram

Know of something you think we should cover? Email us at tips@mentalfloss.com.

October 24, 2016 – 11:30am

October 24, 2016

A 20 year-old book titled “Foundations of Geopolitics” outlined…

A 20 year-old book titled “Foundations of Geopolitics” outlined Russian goals to annex Ukraine, separate the UK from the rest of Europe, and foment racial and isolationist groups in the U.S.

October 24, 2016

Detroit once had a tourist attraction more popular…

Detroit once had a tourist attraction more popular than the Statue of Liberty. The Ford Rotunda was built for the 1934 World’s Fair and was the fifth most visited site in the U.S. before burning to the ground in 1962.

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OUTDOORS, GARDEN, AND SPORTS

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1. TOILET PAPER ROLL FRANKENSTEIN’S MONSTER

2. HALLOWEEN HAIR GEL SUNCATCHERS

3. SPIDER SUCKERS

4. MINIATURE MUMMY

5. EXPLODING PEEP GEYSERS

6. MUMMY DOGS

7. FLYING GHOST ROCKETS

8. HALLOWEEN BOWLING SET

9. HOMEMADE SLIME

10. FRANKENWORMS

11. MAD SCIENCE TEST TUBE RACK