Mental Floss presents In the Beginning: From Big Hair to the Big Bang, mental_floss presents a Mouthwatering Guide to the Origins of Everything (Paperback)

by Editors Of Mental Floss (Author)
Key Phrases: New York, World War, United States (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

Sure, you know all about the birds and bees. But did Dad ever tell you that it wasn't a stork that put that shiny can opener in your kitchen drawer? Or paperclips started out as proud, Nazi-fighting warriors? And did he tell you how cruise control was originally conceived by a blind genius? From mullets to Silly Putty, lie detectors to karaoke, we've got the true stories behind everything you didn't think had stories. Because if you're looking for answers, In the Beginning is the place to start.

About the Author

Will Pearson and Mangesh Hattikudur met as first year students at Duke University. Ignoring the lures of law school and investment banking, the pair co-founded mental_floss and have been grinning ever since. Maggie Koerth-Baker is a freelance journalist and a former assistant editor at mental_floss magazine, where she consistently astounded Will and Mangesh with her amazingness.

Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Harper Paperbacks (November 6, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 006125147X
• ISBN-13: 978-0061251474
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 7.3 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #87,892 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars More fun and interesting facts from "Mental Floss", January 3, 2008

By	Pugmom "lover of dogs, books and horror movies" (Pittsburgh, PA USA) - See all my reviews

"Mental Floss" has done it again- provided a book of fascinating trivia written with their witty and often laugh-out-loud trademark humor. The topic this time is beginnings- or the history and origins of many different things. The entries are divided into chapters, which are as follows: Arts and Literature; Bad Stuff (epidemics, evil creatures, karaoke); Fashion and Beauty; Food and Drink; Fun and Games; Government, Law and Money; Pop Culture; Romance; Science and Medicine; Spinning the Globe (culture and places); Traditions; and Useful Stuff (inventions). Each entry is about one page long. Some of my favorites were the histories of dogs, cats, and guinea pigs (which surprised me) and Aerobics (no, it didn't start with Jane Fonda).
A must have for the trivia lover or fan of other "Mental Floss" publications.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars They did it again, August 29, 2008

By	Guy P. Harrison "author, columnist" (Earth) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Mental Floss does great work. Their mag is funny and always loaded with useful information. This book is outstanding as well. It's more painless learning done in the same style as the magazine.

The text is layed out well in magazine style so it makes easy reading while standing in line or waiting on a plane. They packed tons of material in it, from the origins of mohawk hairdos to popcorn. It's not all silly trivia, however. There is much that is important here that we should all know about history, science and technology but unfortunately don't. So start reading "In the Beginning"!

I highly recommend this fun and handy reference work.

--Guy P. Harrison, author of 50 Reasons People Give for Believing in a God

5.0 out of 5 stars Fun Facts That You May (Never) Use, March 28, 2009

By	WHIMSICAL 0NE - See all my reviews

I am surprised that there are not more reviews for this book. This was the first Mental Floss book that I purchased.

If you're someone who has moments when you're doing something and ask yourself "I wonder who invented this?", or "Have people really been using this for a hundred years?" then you'll thoroughly enjoy this book. If you're someone who has a few extra minutes to kill and likes reading short entries with fascinating information that you'll probably never use, then you'll enjoy this book.

One of the major highlights of this book is the humorous slant that it is written in, which can only expected from Mental Floss. There are also sketched drawings throughout the entries. It is, by no means, written like an encyclopedia.

My only complaint is that there is not an index in this book; instead, it broken into "chapters" which are listed in the front of the book. These chapters include***:

"Arts and Literature": From Shakespeare to Jazz.
"Bad Stuff": Mythical Creatures, Drugs, Epidemics, and more fun/depressing things.
"Fashion and Beauty": From the basics like Soap and Lotion to Hairstyles and Swimsuits.
"Food and Drink": From what eat like Pasta and Gum to the Dishwasher and Toaster.
"Fun and Games": From Boardgames to Roller coasters.
"Government, Law, and Money": From the Royal Family to Taxes and Coupons.
"Pop Culture": Batman and beyond! (Sorry I couldn't help myself, hehe.)
"Romance": Why do we get married? Who invented breast implant?
"Science and Medicine": The Big Bang, Flight, Prosthetics, Electroshock, Organ Transplants, oh my!
"Spinning the Globe": Increase your knowledge of foreign affairs (and how they got that way)!
"Traditions": Religion to Holidays.
"Useful Stuff": From the Wheel (how stereotypical) to air-conditioning, traffic lights, scissors, and even staples.

***I did not list all the entries of the chapters, but listed a few to give you an idea of what they included. There are plenty more entries in the chapters, but I do not have the time nor the patience to type them all out and doubt you have the patience to read them.

All in all, this is a great addition to anyone's bookshelf.