Edit filter log

[ 0 => '{{short description|American online magazine and media company}}', 1 => '{{Infobox magazine', 2 => '| title = Mental Floss', 3 => '| logo = ', 4 => '| logo_size = <!-- default is 180px -->', 5 => '| image_file = Mental Floss Logo 2017.png', 6 => '| image_size = <!-- default is 180px -->', 7 => '| image_alt = ', 8 => '| image_caption = ', 9 => '| editor = <!-- up to |editor5= -->', 10 => '| editor_title = <!-- up to |editor_title5= -->', 11 => '| previous_editor = ', 12 => '| staff_writer = ', 13 => '| photographer = ', 14 => '| category = ', 15 => '| frequency = ', 16 => '| format = ', 17 => '| circulation = ', 18 => '| publisher = ', 19 => '| paid_circulation = ', 20 => '| unpaid_circulation = ', 21 => '| circulation_year = ', 22 => '| total_circulation = ', 23 => '| founder = [[Will Pearson]] and [[Mangesh Hattikudur]]', 24 => '| founded = ', 25 => '| firstdate = {{Start date and age|2001}} ', 26 => '| finaldate = {{End date|2016|November/December}} (print)', 27 => '| finalnumber = v. 15, no. 6 ', 28 => '| company = Minute Media', 29 => '| country = United States', 30 => '| based = [[New York City]], [[New York (state)|New York]]', 31 => '| language = [[English language|English]]', 32 => '| website = {{URL|http://www.mentalfloss.com/}}', 33 => '| issn = 1543-4702', 34 => '| oclc = ', 35 => '}}', 36 => '', 37 => ''''''Mental Floss''''' (stylized '''''mental_floss''''') is an online magazine and its related American digital, print, and [[e-commerce]] media company focused on [[millennials]]. It is owned by Minute Media and based in [[New York City]]. mentalfloss.com, which presents facts, puzzles, and trivia with a humorous tone, draws 20.5 million unique users a month. Its [[YouTube]] channel produces three weekly series and has 1.3 million subscribers. In October 2015, ''Mental Floss'' teamed with the [[National Geographic Channel]] for its first televised special, ''Brain Surgery Live with'' mental_floss, the first [[brain surgery]] ever broadcast live.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://digiday.com/publishers/mental-floss-native/|title=Gone Native: The Magazine Whose Editors Write Ad Content – Digiday|work=[[Digiday]]|access-date=24 September 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://mentalfloss.com/article/62105/we-are-hiring-editors-and-writers|title=We're Hiring Writers, Editors, and a Producer|work=Mental Floss|access-date=24 September 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/brain-surgery-live-with-mental-floss/|title=Brain Surgery Live with Mental Floss|work=National Geographic|access-date=24 January 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://digiday.com/publishers/mental-floss-native/|title=Gone Native: The Magazine Whose Editors Write Ad Content|work=[[Digiday]]|access-date=24 January 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.quantcast.com/mentalfloss.com?country=US|title=Quantcast - Mental Floss|work=Quantcast|access-date=24 January 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://digiday.com/publishers/4-ways-mental-floss-won-millennials/|title=4 Ways Mental Floss Won Millennials|work=[[Digiday]]|access-date=24 January 2016}}</ref>', 38 => '', 39 => 'Launched in [[Birmingham, Alabama]] in 2001,<ref>[http://www.mentalfloss.com/press_birminghamnews.htm Press Release] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060326230719/http://www.mentalfloss.com/press_birminghamnews.htm |date=2006-03-26 }} describing magazine launch</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=The 20 Best Magazines of the Decade (2000–2009)|url=http://www.pastemagazine.com/blogs/lists/2009/11/the-20-best-magazines-of-the-decade.html|work=Paste Magazine|access-date=August 10, 2015|date=November 26, 2009}}</ref> the company has additional offices in [[Midtown Manhattan]]. The publication was included in [[Inc. (magazine)|''Inc.'' magazine]]'s list of the 5,000 fastest growing private companies.<ref>[http://www.news-herald.com/articles/2009/12/06/news/nh1787062.txt "Folks behind mental_floss open retail store in Chester Township"]. ''The News Herald''</ref> Before it became a web-only publication in 2017, the magazine ''mental_floss'' had a circulation of 160,000 and published six issues a year. The magazine had more than 100,000 subscribers in over 17 countries.<ref name="auto">[http://www.cleveland.com/business/index.ssf/2009/04/mental_floss.html "Ohio couple share in the fun as Mental Floss magazine executives"], Cleveland.com</ref> The November/December 2016 issue was the last issue of the print edition of the magazine.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.talkingnewmedia.com/2016/09/30/dennis-publisher-to-shutter-print-edition-of-mental-floss/|title=Mental Floss latest to go digital-only, Dennis Publishing announces|author1=D. B. Hebbard|date=30 September 2016|work=Talking New Media|access-date=12 December 2016}}</ref> Instead of getting a refund, subscribers were sent copies of ''[[The Week]]''.<ref>[http://www.politico.com/media/story/2016/09/mental-floss-ends-print-edition-004786 "Mental Floss to end print edition"], Politico, September 30, 2016</ref>', 40 => '', 41 => 'In 2003 the magazine was product-placed in ''[[Friends]]''. In Season 9 episodes 20 and 21 [[Monica Geller|Monica]] is seen reading a copy in [[Central Perk]].', 42 => '', 43 => 'The company frequently publishes books and sells humorous T-shirts. It also developed a licensed trivia [[board game]] called ''Split Decision'', similar to ''[[Trivial Pursuit]]''. Its online store sells quirky home and office supplies, games and toys.', 44 => '', 45 => '[[Dennis Publishing]] bought ''Mental Floss'' in 2011.', 46 => '', 47 => 'Mental Floss was acquired by Minute Media from the [[Felix Dennis]] estate in September 2018.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Jerde |first1=Sarah |title=Minute Media Acquires Mental Floss |url=https://www.adweek.com/digital/minute-media-acquires-mental-floss/ |website=AdWeek |access-date=23 September 2018}}</ref>', 48 => '', 49 => '==Origin==', 50 => 'The magazine was co-founded by [[Will Pearson|William E. Pearson]] and [[Mangesh Hattikudur]] while they were students at [[Duke University]]. According to the Mental Floss website, the idea came from conversations in the Duke cafeteria about the need for an entertaining educational magazine.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.mentalfloss.com/about.htm |title=mental_floss About page |access-date=2006-06-13 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060611233307/http://www.mentalfloss.com/about.htm |archive-date=2006-06-11 |url-status=dead }}</ref> According to Hattikudur, they wanted to "distill some of the best lectures from our favorite college professors. We thought if we could bottle their enthusiasm and deliver it in monthly installments, it'd be great."<ref name="auto"/>', 51 => '', 52 => 'Later, Pearson met with president of Duke University, who loved the idea, but disliked the name. The first published issue, known as the "Campus Edition", was published in spring 2000, distributing 3,000 issues.', 53 => '', 54 => 'The founders spent much of their first year looking for investors and staff members while raising funds to publish the first issue, which was released in May 2001. Over the following summer, 8,000 copies were distributed, and 60% sold out on newsstands.<ref>See ''Mental Floss'' Volume 5, issue 6, page 8.</ref>', 55 => '', 56 => 'Mental Floss was sold to magazine mogul Felix Dennis in 2011<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://blog.al.com/businessnews/2011/03/mental_floss_sold_to_magazine.html|title=Mental Floss sold to magazine mogul Felix Dennis|last=Diel|first=Stan|website=AL.com|language=en-US|access-date=2019-01-23}}</ref> and again to Minute Media in late 2018.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.adweek.com/digital/minute-media-acquires-mental-floss/|title=Minute Media Acquires Mental Floss|last=Jerde{{!}}September 20|first=Sara|last2=2018|website=www.adweek.com|language=en-US|access-date=2019-01-23}}</ref>', 57 => '', 58 => '==Notable contributors==', 59 => '* Novelist [[John Green (author)|John Green]] worked for the magazine early in his career. Having later become an established [[YouTube]] personality, he began hosting its YouTube channel in March 2013. In 2014, the Mental Floss channel was listed on [[New Media Rockstars]] Top 100 Channels, ranked at #71. In 2015, Green won the Webby Award for mental_floss on YouTube.<ref>{{cite web|title=The NMR Top 100 YouTube Channels: 75-51!|url=http://newmediarockstars.com/2014/12/the-nmr-top-100-youtube-channels-75-51/|website=New Media Rockstars|access-date=6 January 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Mental Floss' John Green|url=http://webbyawards.com/winners/2015/online-film-video/video-channels-and-networks/first-person/mental_floss-john-green/|work=Webby Awards|access-date=24 January 2016}}</ref>', 60 => '* Author [[A. J. Jacobs]] contributed articles based on what he learned reading the ''[[Encyclopædia Britannica]]'', as described in his book ''[[The Know-It-All: One Man's Humble Quest to Become the Smartest Person in the World|The Know-It-All]]''. He currently writes a history column answering reader mail.', 61 => '* [[Ken Jennings]], of ''[[Jeopardy!]]'' fame, wrote a feature called ''Six Degrees of Ken Jennings'', in which he played the game [[six degrees of separation]] with two unrelated people or things, like [[Benedict XVI]] and [[Benedict Arnold]] or [[Isaac Newton]] and [[Apple Computer]]. He now contributes a quiz called "Kennections" on mentalfloss.com.<ref>{{cite web|title=Ken Jennings - Dabbling|url=http://www.ken-jennings.com/dabbling/|work=Ken Jennings|access-date=25 January 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160115213622/http://www.ken-jennings.com/dabbling|archive-date=15 January 2016|url-status=dead}}</ref>', 62 => '* Kara Kovalchik and Sandy Wood served as research editors for the magazine from 2002–2015.', 63 => '* Celebrity chef [[Alton Brown]] wrote a food column and appeared on the cover of the September 2012 issue.', 64 => '* ''[[Saturday Night Live]]'' writer [[Streeter Seidell]] has written for both mental_floss magazine and the website.', 65 => '* Comedian [[Amir Blumenfeld]] writes a column called ''The Curious Comedian''.', 66 => '* Author [[Ransom Riggs]] was a longtime contributor to both the magazine and website.', 67 => '* Linguist [[Arika Okrent]] is the language editor for mental_floss. In 2015 she received the Linguistic Society of America's Linguistics Journalism Award.<ref>{{cite web|title=Arika Okrent announced as winner of LSA Linguistics Journalism Award|url=http://www.linguisticsociety.org/news/2015/10/22/arika-okrent-announced-winner-lsa-linguistics-journalism-award/|work=Linguistic Society|access-date=25 January 2016}}</ref>', 68 => '* Science journalist [[Maggie Koerth-Baker]] was an assistant editor and co-authored the 2009 mental_floss book ''Be Amazing''.', 69 => '* [[Hank Green]] has written for the magazine and is executive producer of the YouTube Channel. He also authored the mental_floss book ''Scatterbrained''.', 70 => '* Comedian [[Elliott Morgan]] hosts the weekly series "Misconceptions" on mental_floss on YouTube.', 71 => '* Comedian [[Max Silvestri]] has hosted two series on the mental_floss YouTube Channel.<ref>{{cite web|title=Watch Max Silvestri Learn to Open Champagne with a Sword|url=http://splitsider.com/2013/08/watch-max-silvestri-learn-to-open-champagne-with-a-sword/|work=Splitsider|access-date=25 January 2016}}</ref>', 72 => '* [[Craig Benzine]] hosts the weekly series "The Big Question" on mental_floss on YouTube.<ref>{{cite web|title=Wheezy Waiter Answers Questions In New Series On Mental Floss Channel|url=https://www.imdb.com/news/ni57690897/|work=IMDb|access-date=25 January 2016}}</ref>', 73 => '', 74 => '==Magazine sections==', 75 => 'Each issue of ''Mental Floss'' magazine was divided into the following sections:', 76 => '* '''Scatterbrained''': 10 pages of trivia, facts and anecdotes about an everyday topic or item.', 77 => '* '''Be Amazing!:''' 10 pages of short articles and interviews, often by guest contributors.', 78 => '* '''Left_Brain/Right_Brain''': articles about "[[left brain]]" topics, like science and logic, and "[[right brain]]" topics, like art and literature.', 79 => '* '''Features''': Some examples were an exposé of [[Shel Silverstein]]'s darker side and a collection of the 25 Most Important Questions in the Universe.', 80 => '* '''Go Mental''': articles about religion, art, history and world culture.', 81 => '* '''The Quiz''': a brief quiz at the back of the magazine.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.mentalfloss.com/magazine/whatismentalfloss.php |title=What is mental_floss? |access-date=2010-03-18 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100305151154/http://www.mentalfloss.com/magazine/whatismentalfloss.php |archive-date=2010-03-05 |url-status=dead }}</ref>', 82 => '', 83 => '===Recurring themes===', 84 => 'Every year, ''Mental Floss'' published a "Ten Issue". It usually featured lists of ten things focusing on subjects like: "Ten Most Forgettable Presidents" or "Ten Famous Monkeys in Science".<ref>See ''Mental Floss'' volume 4, issue 3.</ref>', 85 => '', 86 => 'Initially, "Mental Floss" tried to feature self-proclaimed mascot [[Albert Einstein]] on the cover of each issue. The magazine even did a 'swimsuit issue', which featured a topless Einstein.<ref>{{cite web|title=Making knowledge fun: a look inside the pages of Mental Floss magazine|url=http://www.triviahalloffame.com/mentalfloss.php|website=Trivia Hall of Fame|access-date=22 February 2015}}</ref>', 87 => '', 88 => '==Recurring blog categories==', 89 => '* '''Morning Cup of Links''': Interesting links to news stories, videos and memes from across the Internet', 90 => '* '''5 Questions Quiz''': Daily quizzes with subject clues hidden inside trivia questions', 91 => '* '''The Amazing Fact Generator''': A page that generates random facts and trivia', 92 => '* '''Big Questions: '''Articles that answer questions about history, origins, or science', 93 => '', 94 => '===Books===', 95 => '* ''Mental Floss History of the World: An Irreverent Romp Through Civilization's Best Bits''', 96 => '* ''Genius Instruction Manual''', 97 => '* ''Scatterbrained''', 98 => '* ''What's the Difference?''', 99 => '* ''Cocktail Party Cheat Sheets''', 100 => '* ''Condensed Knowledge''', 101 => '* ''Forbidden Knowledge''', 102 => '* ''Instant Knowledge''', 103 => '* ''In the Beginning''', 104 => '* ''Be Amazing''', 105 => '* ''mental_floss Trivia''', 106 => '* ''mental_floss: The Book: Only The Greatest Lists in the History of Listory''', 107 => '* ''The Mental Floss History of the United States: The (Almost) Complete and (Entirely) Entertaining Story of America', 108 => '', 109 => '==Media coverage and awards==', 110 => '''Mental Floss'' has been covered by magazines and newspapers such as ''[[Reader's Digest]]'', ''[[Los Angeles Times]]'', [[CNN.com]], ''[[Atlanta Journal-Constitution]]'', ''[[Entertainment Weekly]]'', ''[[Newsweek]]'', ''[[Dallas Morning News]]'', ''[[The Wall Street Journal]], [[New York Times]]'' and the ''[[Washington Post]]''.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.mentalfloss.com/magazine/press/ |title=MentalFloss.com Press Room |access-date=2010-03-18 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100305160537/http://www.mentalfloss.com/magazine/press/ |archive-date=2010-03-05 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Other media coverage includes:', 111 => '* Listed as one of the [[Chicago Tribune|''Chicago Tribune''&nbsp;'s]] 50 favorite magazines in June 2007<ref>[http://www.chicagotribune.com/features/lifestyle/living/chi-070625magazinelist-story,1,283174.story Chicago Tribune] "Our 50 Favorite Magazines"</ref>', 112 => '* Listed as one of [[PC World (magazine)|''PC World''&nbsp;'s]] 100 favorite blogs in June 2007<ref>[http://www.pcworld.com/article/133119-9/100_blogs_we_love.html PC World] "100 Blogs We Love"</ref>', 113 => '* Will Pearson and Mangesh Hattikudur among [[Inc. (magazine)|''Inc.'' magazine's]] 30 "coolest young entrepreneurs<ref>[http://www.inc.com/30under30/2007/22-pearson.html Inc. Magazine] "30 Under 30: America's Coolest Young Entrepreneurs"</ref>', 114 => '* Listed as the seventh most engaged company on Twitter by Digiday<ref>[http://www.digiday.com/brands/want-twitter-success Digiday] "Our 50 Favorite Magazines"</ref>', 115 => '* Recognized by [[TIME]] for having one of the top 140 Twitter feeds in 2013.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://techland.time.com/2013/03/25/140-best-twitter-feeds-of-2013/slide/mental-floss/ | work=Time | title=The 140 Best Twitter Feeds Of 2013 | date=25 March 2013 | access-date=20 July 2013 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130718195851/http://techland.time.com/2013/03/25/140-best-twitter-feeds-of-2013/slide/mental-floss/ | archive-date=18 July 2013 | url-status=dead }}</ref>', 116 => '* Won a [[Webby Award]] for "Best Cultural Blog" in May, 2013.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://winners.webbyawards.com/2013/web/general-website/blog-cultural|title=Blog – Cultural|work=webbyawards.com|access-date=24 September 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140226164122/http://winners.webbyawards.com/2013/web/general-website/blog-cultural|archive-date=26 February 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref>', 117 => '* Finalist for "General Excellence" at the National Magazine Awards in 2013.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.magazine.org/about-asme/pressroom/asme-press-releases/asme/national-magazine-awards-2013-finalists-announced|title=National Magazine Awards 2013 Finalists Announced|work=magazine.org|access-date=24 September 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150925104724/http://www.magazine.org/about-asme/pressroom/asme-press-releases/asme/national-magazine-awards-2013-finalists-announced|archive-date=25 September 2015|url-status=dead}}</ref>', 118 => '* Voted one of the "100 Best Websites for Women" by [[Forbes]] in 2013.<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.forbes.com/pictures/lml45egfid/mental-floss/ | work=Forbes | first=Meghan | last=Casserly | title=Mental Floss – In Photos: The 100 Best Websites For Women 2013}}</ref>', 119 => '* Mental Floss won the [[2020 Webby Award|2020 Webby People’s Voice Award for Weird]] in the category Web.<ref name="Kastrenakes">{{cite web |last1=Kastrenakes |first1=Jacob |title=Here are all the winners of the 2020 Webby Awards |url=https://www.theverge.com/2020/5/20/21263445/2020-webby-awards-winners-lil-nas-x-nasa-jon-krasinski |website=The Verge |access-date=22 May 2020 |language=en |date=20 May 2020}}</ref>', 120 => '', 121 => '==References==', 122 => '{{Reflist|30em}}', 123 => '', 124 => '==External links==', 125 => '* {{Official website|http://www.mentalfloss.com/}}', 126 => '', 127 => '[[Category:2001 establishments in Alabama]]', 128 => '[[Category:Online magazines published in the United States]]', 129 => '[[Category:Magazines established in 2001]]', 130 => '[[Category:Magazines disestablished in 2016]]', 131 => '[[Category:Magazines published in Alabama]]', 132 => '[[Category:Mass media in Birmingham, Alabama]]', 133 => '[[Category:Online magazines with defunct print editions]]', 134 => '[[Category:Webby Award winners]]', 135 => '[[Category:Defunct magazines published in the United States]]' ]