Matt Soniak
Mental Floss
Philadelphia, PA, United States
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Past articles by Matt:
Why Does the New Year Start on January 1?
Our current calendar all goes back to the Roman god Janus. Who, way back when, was the god of doors and gates and had two faces—one looking forward and one looking back. → Read More
License to Bird: Meet the Real James Bond
On January 4, 1900, a child was born in Philadelphia. His name was Bond. James Bond. He would grow up to become an ornithologist, and lived a fairly quiet, normal life—until someone borrowed his name. → Read More
35 Facts About Bruce Springsteen
Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen, a.k.a. "The Boss," is the patron saint of the working man, the protector of all that is holy and righteous on E Street. → Read More
How Are Hurricane Categories Determined?
To assign a numeric category value to a hurricane, meteorologists look to the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale. → Read More
Why Do People Get Ice Cream Headaches?
You may know an ice cream headache by one of its other names: brain freeze, a cold-stimulus headache, or sphenopalatine ganglioneuralgia ("nerve pain of the sphenopalatine ganglion"). But no matter what you call it, it hurts like hell. → Read More
In What Field Was Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. a Doctor?
Martin Luther King Jr. earned a doctorate in systematic theology from Boston University in 1955. In 1989, archivists working with The Martin Luther King Papers Project discovered that King’s dissertation suffered from what they called a “problematic use of sources.” → Read More
Why Does Santa Claus Give Coal to Bad Kids?
The tradition of giving misbehaving children lumps of coal predates the Santa Claus we know and love today. → Read More
Why Does Turkey Make You Tired?
Why do people have such a hard time staying awake after Thanksgiving dinner? Most people blame tryptophan, but that's not really the main culprit. → Read More
What’s That Thing That Hangs Off a Turkey’s Face?
Test your knowledge with amazing and interesting facts, trivia, quizzes, and brain teaser games on MentalFloss.com. → Read More
How Did 6 Feet Become the Standard Grave Depth?
It started with the plague, but it's no longer accurate. → Read More
How Are Hurricane Categories Determined?
Test your knowledge with amazing and interesting facts, trivia, quizzes, and brain teaser games on MentalFloss.com. → Read More
Why Does Food Taste Bad After You Brush Your Teeth?
If you have no idea what we're talking about, go brush your teeth and chug some orange juice. → Read More
Why Does Asparagus Make Your Pee Smell Funny?
Even Benjamin Franklin noted that eating asparagus "shall give our urine a disagreeable odor." → Read More
How to Make Miles Davis’s Famous Chili Recipe
Test your knowledge with amazing and interesting facts, trivia, quizzes, and brain teaser games on MentalFloss.com. → Read More
How to Make Miles Davis’s Famous Chili Recipe
One of the most influential musicians of the 20th century was also pretty handy in the kitchen. → Read More
The Time Ben Franklin and John Adams Shared a Bed
The Founding Fathers were forced to shack up for a night. Then argued over the window. → Read More
Why Do Onions Make You Cry?
Test your knowledge with amazing and interesting facts, trivia, quizzes, and brain teaser games on MentalFloss.com. → Read More
Why Do Onions Make You Cry?
Many of us burst into tears when we cut into one, too. It's the price we pay for onion-y goodness. So why and how can we make it stop? → Read More
Why Do Radio Stations Begin With 'K' or 'W'?
Test your knowledge with amazing and interesting facts, trivia, quizzes, and brain teaser games on MentalFloss.com. → Read More
Why Does the Leaning Tower of Pisa Lean?
Soft soil is only the beginning of the story. → Read More