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Discover the science behind the most popular sci-fi franchise of all time!Capturing the imagination and hearts of crowds worldwide, Star Wars is a fantastic feat of science fiction and fantasy. The Science of Star Wars addresses 50 topics that span the movies'universe such as battle technology, alien life, space travel, etc. You'll find fascinating explorations of the physics of Star Wars, its plausibility, and more. The perfect Star Wars gift for fans of the saga, this book addresses many unanswered, burning questions, including: How long before we get a Star Wars speeder off the ground? What exactly is the Force? How could Kylo Ren stop a blaster shot in mid-air? How could we live on a gas giant like Bespin, or a desert planet like Tatooine? Nature versus nurture: How does it play out in the making of Jedi? How much would it cost to build the Death Star? And much more!We marvel at the variety of creatures and technology and the mystery behind the force. But how much of the Star Wars world is rooted in reality? Could we see some of the extraordinary inventions materialize in our world? This uncomplicated, entertaining read makes it easy to understand how advanced physics concepts, such as wormholes and Einstein's theory of relativity, apply to the Star Wars universe.The Science of Star Wars explains to non-technical readers how physics and fantasy might merge to allow for the possibility of interstellar travel; communication with foreign but intelligent lifeforms; human-like robots; alien planets fit for human life; weapons and spacecraft such as laser guns, light sabers, and the Millennium Falcon; and Force-like psychokinetic powers.In the 21st Century, we're on the edge of developing much of the technology from “a long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away”… These fantasies aren't as impossible as you might think! Written for every fan of George Lucas's films, you don't need to be a Jedi or an astrophysicist at NASA to appreciate all of Mark Brake and Jon Chase's fun and informative analysis of this classic series in The Science of Star Wars. Prepare your mind to make the jump to light speed and find out about the facts behind one of our favorite modern epics!

The beloved bathroom reader series continues with this twenty-ninth edition that's overflowing with strange facts on an assortment of topics. What's so uncanny about the twenty-ninth annual edition of Uncle John's? This enduring book series has been delivering entertaining information to three generations of readers (so far)... and it's still going strong! How do they do it? Back in 1988, Uncle John successfully predicted the way that twenty-first-century readers would want their information: in quick hits, concisely and cleverly written, and with details so delightful that you're compelled to share them with someone else. (Kind of like the Internet, but without all those annoying ads.) This groundbreaking series has been imitated time and time again but never equaled. And Uncanny is the Bathroom Readers'Institute at their very best. Covering a wide array of topics—incredible origins, forgotten history, weird news, amazing science, dumb crooks, and more—readers of all ages will enjoy these 512 pages of the best stuff in print. Here are but a few of the uncanny topics awaiting you: · The World's Weirdest Protests · The Wit and Wisdom of Bill Murray · Forgotten Game Shows · Darth Vader's Borderline Personality Disorder, and Other Real Psychiatric Diagnoses of Fictional Characters · Manly Historical Leaders and Their Manly Tattoos · NASA's “Pillownaut” Experiment · The Secret Lives of Squatters · Cooking with Mr. Coffee · Odd Alcoholic Drinks from Around the World · The History of the Tooth Fairy · Zoo Escapes · And much more IBPA Benjamin Franklin Silver Award winner 2017!

YouTube sensation Matthew Santoro amazes with eye-opening facts that are sure to blow your mind.Matthew Santoro's originality and humor has attracted millions of fans, making him a beloved YouTube star. His weekly videos on amazing and little-known facts are eagerly anticipated by his many subscribers and followers around the world. In his first-ever book, Matthew's love of weird and wacky knowledge explodes with new facts and stories from around the planet, and beyond. Surprising, and always entertaining, Mind = Blown offers even more of Matthew's unique take on this hilarious, crazy world: The most ridiculous laws from past and presentCrazy doppelgangers of people, places, and unexpected thingsHistorical wizards who actually livedReal-life animal avengersAnd a special section: Japan Blows My Mind!From shin-kicking competitions and beer pong-playing robots, to enormous fire-balls shooting through space, you won't believe what you'll discover in Mind = Blown. But beware: there is too much astounding trivia for any one mind to contain!

'That's it, I'm moving to Canada.'It's been threatened before, but maybe this time it's for real.If you or someone you know is discontented, distressed, or downright disturbed, maybe the Great White North is right for you, eh. But how much do you really know about Canada?Can you do a job that Canada needs (do you play hockey, drill for oil, or make poutine?)?Can you identify the best Canadian province for your lifestyle (lots of tundra or just some tundra?)?Can you master the proper pronunciation of'sorry'?What strange wizardry is the Canadian government?Is maple syrup acceptable substitution for currency?At long last, How to Move to Canada can help make your vague threat into a cold Canadian reality. This book is also full of activities such as:Color the flag of your new homelandMatch the strange Canuck dialect with their local definitionsAnd more!PLEASE NOTE: This is a humor book. It won't really help you emigrate. Rather, it's a subversive mix of real information on the Great White North plus a hilarious look at all the reasons why you won't like it there any better — and why they probably won't have you anyway.

‘This book is a record of the British upper classes – and a few others – at their best (sometimes their worst), displaying a sort of unhinged blitheness of manner that leads them to say and do strangely unexpected things. It is a quality of innocent insolence, or maybe guileless arrogance, which belongs only to the very rich, the very privileged and the very idle.'Consider the duke who, on being told by his butler that there was no bread, demanded to know why he had not been brought toast, or the earl whose passion for his good-looking young footmen led to their tinkling with the jewellery he had given them. Or the duke who, when it was tentatively suggested that he might, as an economy, dispense with one of his six chefs – the pastry cook – gazed bleakly at his straitened future and asked plaintively, ‘Can't a chap have a biscuit?'Patrick Scrivenor has combed the annals of the British aristocracy to provide an illuminating – and wildly funny – portrait of people who, though often talented in their own fields, courteous and well-meaning, generous and even liberal-minded, none the less display a certain disconnectedness from the realities that tend to afflict the less elevated echelons of society. The result is clear evidence that what many call ‘eccentricity', the more rational would probably describe as ‘plain bonkers'.Whether you aspire to the upper reaches of the Establishment yourself, or long for the Revolution and the tumbrils carrying the toffs to their horrible fate, this is a book to amuse, delight, mystify, amaze and, occasionally, outrage any reader.

Beethoven's Skull is an unusual and often humorous survey of the many strange happenings in the history of Western classical music. Proving that good music and shocking tabloid-style stories make excellent bedfellows, it presents tales of revenge, murder, curious accidents, and strange fates that span more than two thousand years. Highlights include: A cursed song that kills those who hear it A composer who lovingly cradles the head of Beethoven's corpse when his remains are exhumed half a century after his death A fifteenth-century German poet who sings of the real-life Dracula A dream of the devil that inspires a virtuoso violin pieceUnlike many music books that begin their histories with the seventeenth or eighteenth centuries, Beethoven's Skull takes the reader back to the world of ancient Greece and Rome, progressing through the Middle Ages and all the way into the twentieth century. It also looks at myths and legends, superstitions, and musical mysteries, detailing the ways that musicians and their peers have been rather horrible to one another over the centuries.

A list of five words to describe Uncle John's Lists That Make You Go Hmmm...: 1. Funny; 2. Fact-filled; 3. Surprising; 4. Unique; 5. Essential.Uncle John's Lists That Make You Go Hmmm... puts a whole new spin on Uncle John's unique brand of trivia. Readers will be treated to 288 pages of irresistible easy-to-digest lists featuring short facts, fascinating history, and weird news--plus lists about science, sports, quotes, wordplay, showbiz, and random oddities. Some examples: “4 Yellow Things (and Why They're Yellow”), “5 Dumb Crooks Who Led the Cops Right To Them,” “The 6 Smartest Dog Breeds,” “7 Lists of 7s” (on page 77), “Hollywood's 8 Stupidest Science Goofs,” “9 Celebrity Marriages that Didn't Outlast Milk,” and “The 10 Commandments (and 10 Politicians Who Broke Them).”

A humorous guide to surviving in the wilderness, that also might make you want to avoid the wilderness forever.For more than twenty-five years, Uncle John's Bathroom Reader has helped you learn amazing things you didn't know. Now, Uncle John will show you how to do things you didn't know how to do... and probably should never, never, never actually do, unless you're in a survival situation and really, really, really need to do. It's How to Fight a Bear... and Win. A new approach to survival guides and how-to books, this book provides step-by-step instructions for how to make do in any rugged terrain. But if you're expecting “how to start a fire,” think again. This isn't the kind of book that will tell you how to make a fire by rubbing two sticks together—it will tell you how to make a fire using a car battery. It will also tell you:· How to swing from a vine like Tarzan· How to land an airplane in an emergency· How to fight a bear... and win· How to perform emergency surgery in the woods· How to identify what insects you can—and cannot—eat And lots, lots more

From the world leader in fascinating facts and amusing true stories comes a book about how things are made…and you should be glad that you don't have to make them yourself.For more than 25 years, Uncle John's Bathroom Reader has helped you learn amazing things you didn't know (and amazing things you didn't know you didn't know). Now, Uncle John will show you how to do things you didn't know how to do…and probably shouldn't ever, ever, ever actually do. It's Uncle John's How to Toilet Train Your Cat A new approach to survival guides and how-to books, this book provides step-by-step instructions for how to make commonplace items. If you're expecting “how to make your own beef jerky,” think again. This book shows how the “sausage is made”—literally. Read all about: • How to make gelatin from scratch (by boiling hooves)• How to make high fructose corn syrup• How to make glue the “old-fashioned” way (from animal hides)• How to build a nuclear reactor• How to embalm a corpse• How to make prison wine• How to turn a cow into a hamburger• How to make a diamond• How to make electricity• How to remove your own appendix• And lots, lots more!

The famouser they are, the funnier they fall!Oops, they did it again. Whether it's Tom Cruise going berserk on Oprah's couch, Taylor Swift ending a relationship just so she can write a song, or Jennifer Lawrence falling at the Oscars—twice, when celebrities get involved, goofs are bound to happen. And those goofs take center stage in Showbiz Blunders, which includes several BRI classics along with some all-new hijinks from today's (and yesterday's) dimmest stars. So get ready to feel superior to folks who make way too much money as you read about… • Kooky stars: Shia LaBeouf apologizes for plagiarism via plagiarized statements and Tara Reid ponders where whale sharks come from • How to get fired from your own TV show• Hollywood's biggest bombs: Jack and Jill, From Justin to Kelly, Battlefield Earth, and more• John Wayne as Genghis Kahn, possibly the most questionable casting decision ever• The day Johnny Cash accidentally burned down a forest• The fake reality of reality television• How the movie The Beach destroyed the beach it was filmed on• Eye-rolling movie bloopers—like digital watches in the Edwardian era • And the award goes to…oops! And much, much more!

Kick a home run through the goal posts of life in this jock-ular collection of old stories and new from the Bathroom Reader sports pages!Uncle John's Sports Shorts lets you relive the sporting world's most incredible moments! From ancient stick-and-ball games to modern-day sports deals and the physics of football, it's all in here: great finishes, embarrassing losses, inside secrets, bizarre pastimes, and disastrous “Dumb Jocks” quotes—including this bewildering gem from the NFL's Erik Ainge about Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez: “He's stupid while being stupid. You have to be smart while being stupid, and he's dumb while being dumb.” Don't even try to comprehend that, just read about what else you'll find in Sports Shorts: • Bowling for humans• Reasons you should never mix hipsters, kickball, and alcohol • The hidden power of Olympic swimming champion Mark Spitz's mustache• The origins of surfing, instant replay, ESPN, March Madness, cricket, stock car racing, and more• How the Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders changed the way America watches sports • The biggest conspiracy theories in pro sports, the most shocking uses and abuses of the Stanley Cup, and the most hellish holes in golf • Baseball records that will never be broken• When soccer moms go ballisticAnd much, much more!

A New York Times Best Seller!Here is a book to lead you through the fascinating intersections of life and physics with humor and intelligence.Find out how the laws of physics define every aspect of our lives and society, from human nature and relationships to geopolitical issues like financial markets, globalization and immigration. The Quantum Rules is a different kind of physics book, as easy to read as a novel and directly relevant for everyday life issues that affect us all. It is not meant to dazzle you with unproven speculations that have no bearing on your life. Rather, The Quantum Rules will familiarize you with the important and established laws at the heart of physics, in a way never done before – by showing how the defining patterns of our lives, our behavior and our society already follow similar rules.Never took an interest in science before? No problem! you will still understand everything and find plenty to relate to. A scientist or a science junkie? You will find a different perspective on things you may already know. Best of all, you will discover how to have meaningful conversations about physics in a way that won't make eyes glaze over, and in which all can gladly participate.The Quantum Rules also does something you would never expect from a book on physics – it makes you laugh, often. Its new and original take on established natural laws injects plenty of dry humor into this serious subject, by using life to explain physics and in turn using physics to understand life.

A collection of some of the wildest and weirdest trivia packed with incredible facts, obscure history, interesting origins, bizarre quotes, and more. The second fully illustrated entry in Uncle John's popular new Weird, Weird World series opens a portal to the bizarre. It's page after page of unbelievable history, odd origins, tales of amazing luck, kooky conspiracy theories, epic fails, astounding facts, and some things that are so weird that they defy description. That's where the pictures come in: Hundreds of eye-popping photographs and illustrations take the humor and the fun to a whole new dimension... to the EPIC zone! Read about... • How to Hypnotize a Chicken • The Origin of the Lie Detector • Weirdest Ways to Die at National Parks • Feral Cat Day and Other Strange-But-Real Holidays • Here Comes the Spammobile! • Keith Urban Legends • The Power of Poo • Winners of “Ugly Dog” Contests • Weird World Records • TV Shows That Were All a Dream • Kalshnikov Pat & the Helicopter Jailbreakers • Odd-phrodisiacs • Japan's Most Surreal Video Games • News Pundits Gone Wild • The Pacific Garbage Patch • Calamity Jane and the Old West's Toughest Gals • What Your Nose Says About Your Love Life • Scams That Could Only Be Pulled Off by Identical Twins • Anarchy in the E.R. And much, much more

Starting from the depths of the Bathroom Reader archives, you'll be transported to exotic lands where you'll learn the local customs and sample the curious cuisine (without those annoying stomach cramps). You'll also meet some of the strangest people in the world, and you might even learn a new word or two. So hang on tight as you read about… • Why time travel movies were banned in China, and other fun things forbidden in foreign countries• How to give your business card to a Japanese businessman, and other handy travel tips• Uncle John's Stall of Fame• Racing sled dogs in the Arctic, running a marathon across the Moroccan desert, and floating a raft across the Atlantic• What's all the buzz about in Amsterdam?• How to find your antipodes—the exact opposite side of the planet from you• The world's biggest blunders, best inventions, and worst disasters• Ronnie Biggs—Brazil's most famous English fugitive• Worldly wisdom, including this from Charles Schulz: “Don't worry about the world coming to an end today. It's already tomorrow in Australia.”And much, much more!

492 Great Things About Being Italian is fun, informative and catnip for 17 million Italian-Americans. It follows in the footsteps of other successful books aimed at this minority proud of its remarkable—and ongoing!—heritage. It comprises 492 (as in 1492) individual people, things, places and phenomena that make one proud to be Italian (or half-Italian, which adds millions more to the target market). But one doesn't have to be Italian to enjoy this book, any more than one has to be Jewish to love rye bread! Italy is Americans'second-favorite travel destination outside North America, and Italian foods, celebrities, entertainment, etc., are popular with most everyone. It's also the kind of book that once you peek inside, you won't be able to read just one entry of the 492—it's like potato chips!

Filled with trivia, puzzles, mazes, jokes, and searches all focused on the act, history, and science of pooing, 52 Things to Do While You Poo is one of the funniest bathroom humor books to keep you entertained while you're stuck in the loo.52 Things to Do While You Poo turns an often mundane daily routine into an opportunity for amusement and learning. Each page offers a unique activity, from brainteasers and word searches to interesting trivia and humorous tidbits, providing a fun distraction that makes the time fly by.Whether you're looking for a cheeky white elephant or gag gift for adults or a book to keep on the shelf for personal entertainment, 52 Things to Do While You Poo is a hilarious, off-beat addition to any bathroom collection.

The right quotation can change your life. That compressed idea--expressed in just a few words, a sentence or two--can shift your thinking, trigger an epiphany, alter your way of seeing the world. The wisest, most experienced, and most thoughtful people in history have left us these little thought-bombs. And this book collects them: surprising, jolting, discomforting, and comforting insights into living a full, unbridled life, questioning authority and reality, relating to fellow humans, creating, risking, loving, living with uncertainty, and staying sane in an insane world. Poets, philosophers, scientists, musicians, artists, presidents, mystics, activists, academics, and others rub shoulders, giving us the benefit of their hard-earned wisdom, breakthroughs, breakdowns, bad choices, sudden illuminations, and lightning wit. Sharing some of life's most important lessons are William Blake and Bruce Lee, Abraham Lincoln and Lorrie Moore, Fyodor Dostoevsky and Terence McKenna, René Magritte and St. Teresa of Avila, Zelda Fitzgerald and James Baldwin, and hundreds more. Neatly arranged into topics we wonder about, Flash Wisdom's rousing insights and challenging thoughts will appeal to anyone who is searching, anyone who doesn't fit in, anyone who questions the way things are...which is to say, all of us

“Everybody has got to die, but I have always believed an exception would be made in my case.” –William Saroyan, Pulitzer Prize–winning authorFamous authors, like everybody else, know that one day they will die. Final Chapters tells the fascinating stories of more than one hundred writers'encounters with death—and their attitudes toward the Grim Reaper: fear, uncertainty, or acceptance.Francis Bacon wrote, “It is as natural to die as to be born,” while Socrates told the judges who condemned him, “And now we go our ways, I to die and you to live. Which is better is known to God alone.”Death often came in startling ways for these well-known writers. The playwright Aeschylus was conked by a turtle falling from the sky. Christopher Marlowe was stabbed in a barroom brawl. Molière collapsed while playing the role of a hypochondriac in one of his plays.Edgar Allan Poe was found semicomatose in someone else's clothes shortly before he died. Sherwood Anderson was felled by a toothpick in a martini. Did Dylan Thomas really die of eighteen straight whiskeys? And was it a bottle cap or murder that did in Tennessee Williams?If these authors have lessons for us, the best may be that of Marcus Aurelius: “Death smiles at us all; all we can do is smile back.”

This is the comprehensive, standardized dictionary of military and associated terminology compiled and used by the Department of Defense. Divided into two sections, The Dictionary of Military Terms contains the terms and definitions approved for Department of Defense (DOD) and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) use as well as a complete listing of commonly used abbreviations and acronyms. These military and associated terms, together with their definitions, constitute approved terminology for general use by all DOD components.The Dictionary of Military Terms supplements standard English-language dictionaries and standardizes military and associated terminology to improve communication and mutual understanding within the DOD, with other federal agencies, and among the United States and its allies. It is the primary terminology source when preparing correspondence, including policy, strategy, doctrine, and planning documents. This publication applies to the Office of the Secretary of Defense, the Services, the Joint Staff, combatant commands, DOD agencies, and all other DOD components, and covers terms such as:active defensebattle damage assessmentcandidate target listdirected energyevent matrixfootprinthub and spoke distributionmobilizationnonconventional assisted recoveryprotectionretained personnelspecial operationssurvival, evasion, resistance, and escapeweapons readiness stateand more!

Uncle John takes a full-color plunge into the Garden State!As the birthplace of baseball, the Boss, and Bubble Wrap—New Jersey has got it all, and Uncle John's Plunges into New Jersey (Illustrated Edition) covers it all…in brilliant Technicolor! This cool compendium is full of electrifying trivia and fascinating facts about the Garden State, but now it's jam-packed with photographs and illustrations too! What kind of information are in these pages, you ask? Read all about… • What to eat at a diner (breakfast...anytime…obviously).• Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Shuffle.• The parts of Ellis Island that aren't in New York.• Jersey Boys, Jersey Girls, and the Jersey Devil. And much more! It's the perfect gift for all New Jerseyans—whether they were lucky enough to be born in the Garden State or just always wished to be.

The twenty-eighth edition in the bestselling bathroom-reading series is jam-packed with 512 pages of absorbing trivia material. Uncle John gets a Factastic facelift for the twenty-eighth all-new edition of this beloved book series. All of Uncle John's Bathroom Reader favorites are packed into these 512 glorious pages—from little-known history to the origins of everyday things—plus odd news, weird fads, quirky quotes, mind-bending science, head-scratching blunders, and all sorts of random oddities. Oh yeah, and thousands of incredible facts! Feel smarter (and a bit more dignified) as you settle into: • Weird Body Parts of the Rich and Famous • The Wild Man of Borneo • Cryptic Movie Titles Explained • “Pathological Generosity” and Other Real Medical Conditions • How to Perform CPR on Your Dog • When Postal Workers Go Rogue • Start Your Own Country! • Animals Under the Influence • Welcome to No Mans Land • The Mad Potter of Biloxi • Saved From the Trash: The “Lost Leonardo” • The Ten Longest Wars in History • Stomach-churning Food-Safety Mistakes • You Swallowed What? • Incredible Stories of Survival • The Case of the Stolen Bridge and Other Weird Crime Reports • And much, much more

From the number one source of bathroom reading, an illustrated guide to trivia surrounding the City That Never Sleeps. You think you know New York? Fugeddaboutit! Uncle John takes you on a whirlwind tour of the greatest place on Earth! Discover fascinating history, odd facts, and the unique people who make New York the Big Apple of the world's eye. Read all about... · UFOs visit the Empire State · What ever happened to Crazy Eddie? · The history of bagels & The New Yorker · The Kingdom of Zog & other lost landmarks · New York's grumpiest tourist: Charles Dickens · Could you pass the Ellis Island immigration test? · The New York Times crossword puzzle goofs · The Borscht Belt comedians · The incredible natural phenomenon known as Manhattanhenge · The public library, the subway, and the city's narrowest house · The Naked Cowboy and Lady Liberty's big feet · People who actually tried to sell the Brooklyn Bridge · No soup for you! And much more

From the world leader in fascinating facts and amusing true stories comes a book about all things beer.For more than 25 years, Uncle John's Bathroom Reader has helped you learn amazing things you didn't know (and amazing things you didn't know you didn't know). Now, Uncle John's tackles one of the world's best loved and—fastest growing interests— beer. Pull up a stool and chug a pint of Beer-Topia, a rich, deep-bodied keg of beer knowledge, beer trivia, beer history, and beer fun. In recent years, beer has evolved from the swill your uncle drank at the bowling alley to the explosively-popular “microbrew” culture. There's a lot to explore about the beer phenomenon, and Beer-Topia will plumb the depths.What's on tap:The histories and origins of all the different styles of beersInteresting (and weird) beer flavorsThe science of beer, and how it's madeCrazy beer-related news storiesBeer terminologyFunny microbrew namesAnd lots, lots more!

Jump-start any conversation with this “witty book... for anyone who likes to show off random bits of knowledge at the dinner table” (Men's Journal).Did you know that “Karaoke” is Japanese for “Empty orchestra”? Or that all snowflakes have six sides? With this collection of over 350 fascinating, little-known facts, you'll be ready to get any conversation off and running. Hand-drawn illustrations and a charming conversationalist add personality to everything from the number of shipping containers lost at sea (about one per hour!) to now-retired Twinkie flavors (banana cream). Who knew that any month beginning on a Sunday will have a Friday the 13th? Or that there are more cell phones in the world than toothbrushes? Engaging and addictive, this is trivia with character.

Ah Ireland, it's a great little country all the same, if only you could put a roof on it. While we may be a nation of messers and begrudgers, we'll always have a soft spot for our land of sunny spells and scattered showers. Who else but the Irish can perform minor miracles with a prayer to St Anthony? Or truly appreciate the medicinal purposes of Flat 7Up? Not to mention the front room, chipper chips and the'bad pint'!From things you'll only hear and taste in Ireland to tips for surviving any social situation (an Irish wedding anyone?!), Ronan Moore's witty, irreverent and nostalgic guide will have you laughing your way to a degree in Irishology.Altogether now …'Lowwww lie the Fields of Athenryyyy'

The earth revolves around the sun. The sun revolves around Gene Simmons, and Gene Simmons revolves around nothing. In this authorized parody of one of rock and roll's biggest icons, fans will find incredible “facts” about the legend that is Gene Simmons, peppered with words of wisdom straight from the Demon's tongue, hilarious reactions to Gene from kids, reimagined movie posters featuring Gene Simmons in the title role, and much, much more. · The Gene Simmons chess set has 1 king and 31 pawns. · When Gene Simmons breaks a sweat, everyone scrambles to put it back together. · Gene Simmons can get to the center of a Tootsie Pop in one lick. · When Gene Simmons walks into a strip club the girls pay him. · Gene Simmons doesn't need an umbrella because rain knows better. - Stan Lee was going to make Gene Simmons a Superhero, but decided to stick to fiction.

“Vastly informative and vastly entertaining…A scholarly and fascinating book.” —Los Angeles Times With dazzling wit and astonishing insight, Bill Bryson explores the remarkable history, eccentricities, resilience and sheer fun of the English language. From the first descent of the larynx into the throat (why you can talk but your dog can't), to the fine lost art of swearing, Bryson tells the fascinating, often uproarious story of an inadequate, second-rate tongue of peasants that developed into one of the world's largest growth industries.

Pop culture-themed quizzes for a quirky, fun way to better understand your personality.Open this book to any page and you'll find a personality quiz that's both fun to fill out and revealing in its results. Just grab a pen and get started. You already know the answer to every question, but do you dare discover what those answers say about who you are... really?!HOW SEXY ARE YOU?SweetPlayfulRed HotWHICH FRIENDS CHARACTER ARE YOU?RachelMonicaPhoebeARE YOU DRAMATIC?ZeroSortaDrama QueenYOU'RE THE LEADING LADY IN WHICH ROM-COM?Bridget Jones's DiaryLegally BlondeYou've Got MailWHICH BEYONCÉ ERA ARE YOU?Destiny's ChildSingle LadiesDrunk in LoveWHICH CELEBRITY SCANDAL WOULD YOU HAVE?DUICaught CheatingLeaked Sex TapeWHERE SHOULD YOU LIVE?New York CityAustinSan FranciscoWHAT ALCOHOLIC DRINK FITS YOUR PERSONALITY?BeerMartiniChampagneWHICH TV POLITICIAN MATCHES YOUR STYLE?Frank UnderwoodSelina MeyerLeslie KnopeHOW WEIRD ARE YOU?Run-of-the-MillQuirkyCreepyWHICH LITERARY HEROINE ARE YOU?Elizabeth BennetHermione GrangerJo March

Strange, zany and at times downright baffling, Foster's Historical Irish Oddities is a quirky compendium of true stories from all over Ireland.It is essential reading for anyone who loves to entertain friends and family with a good yarn or who needs further proof that Ireland is indeed a country with a unique cast of characters.From the Lismore man who rode to Fermoy in a tub pulled by a pig, a badger, two cats, a goose and a hedgehog to the tornado that ripped through Limerick in 1851, this is the perfect book for anyone with an interest in Irish history and a taste for the absurd. Foster's stories may not be found in the history books but they certainly provide an entertaining and addictive read!

Based on his popular Wired magazine column What's Inside, Patrick Di Justo takes a hard and incredibly funny look at the shocking, disgusting, and often dumbfounding ingredients found in everyday products, from Cool Whip and Tide Pods to Spam and Play-Doh.What do a cup of coffee and cockroach pheromone have in common? How is Fix-A-Flat like sugarless gum? Is a Slim Jim meat stick really alive? If I Can't Believe It's Not Butter isn't butter, what is it? All of these pressing questions and more are answered in This Is What You Just Put In Your Mouth? Patrick shares the madcap stories of his extensive research, including tracking down a reclusive condiment heir, partnering with a cop to get his hands on heroin, and getting tight-lipped snack-food execs to talk. Along the way, he schools us on product histories, label decoding, and the highfalutin chemistry concepts behind everything from Midol to Hostess fruit pies. Packed with facts you're going to want to share immediately, this is infotainment at its best—and most fun!—it will leave you giving your shampoo the side-eye and Doritos a double take, and make you the know-it-all in line at the grocery store.

This completely authorized Big Bang Theory trivia and quiz book is filled with questions from every season, photos, hilarious quotes, and more, including excerpts from the Roommate Agreement and your chance to play ‘Emily or Cinnamon.'It's sure to provide hours of fun and test the knowledge of even the most dedicated fan.The Big Bang Theory is one of the most popular sitcoms in the world and the funniest show on TV. It is beloved by critics and audiences alike for its quick wit, incredibly geeky but relatable characters, and its science and science fiction storylines. But up until now, there has never been an official Big Bang Theory book. The Big Bang Theory: The Official Trivia Guide is the book fans have been waiting for. Featuring 1,600 questions, photos, and many of the best quotes from Sheldon, Raj, Penny, Howard, Leonard, Amy, and Bernadette, as well as a complete episode guide, this official book will entertain all Big Bang fans, old and new alike. Do you know what instrument Leonard plays in the Physics Department String Quartet? Or which award Sheldon is the youngest person to have ever received? Or how about the name of Penny's avatar in the Age of Conan game? Or who Howard went to couples therapy with? Or the name of Raj's school? Or when Sheldon does his laundry? Or what Leonard brought Penny back from the North Pole? You don't need Sheldon's eidetic memory to enjoy this book, but it might help! Get ready to use your knowledge of The Big Bang Theory and challenge your friends and family with trivia and questions about your favorite scientists.

From the creator of the wildly popular webcomic xkcd, hilarious and informative answers to important questions you probably never thought to ask.Millions of people visit xkcd.com each week to read Randall Munroe's iconic webcomic. His stick-figure drawings about science, technology, language, and love have a large and passionate following.Fans of xkcd ask Munroe a lot of strange questions. What if you tried to hit a baseball pitched at 90 percent the speed of light? How fast can you hit a speed bump while driving and live? If there was a robot apocalypse, how long would humanity last?In pursuit of answers, Munroe runs computer simulations, pores over stacks of declassified military research memos, solves differential equations, and consults with nuclear reactor operators. His responses are masterpieces of clarity and hilarity, complemented by signature xkcd comics. They often predict the complete annihilation of humankind, or at least a really big explosion.The book features new and never-before-answered questions, along with updated and expanded versions of the most popular answers from the xkcd website. What If? will be required reading for xkcd fans and anyone who loves to ponder the hypothetical.

From the world-wide leader in strange-but-true stories comes a fascinating book full of the marvels of mechanical men, glimpses into tomorrow's technology…and what happens when machines go mad. It's a robot invasion!For more than 25 years, the writers at the Bathroom Readers'Institute have had a soft spot in their hearts for all things robotic. From the promise of artificial intelligence making the world a better place to the threat of an android apocalypse, we never get tired of reading about robots. They perform surgery, traverse the surface of Mars, and even cook a perfect steak…until they malfunction and chase after their human creators. Uncle John's Robotica will stimulate your humor sensors with hundreds of incredible stories about robots from the past, the present…and the future. Prepare to be assimilated as you read about...• Robotic suits…controlled by monkeys• The robot that can rebuild itself• The world's first robot• Pop-culture robots (such as the mecha-Michael Jackson with laser-shooting eyes)• Robotic roaches that herd real cockroaches• Microscopic nanobots that heal you before you know you're sick• Garbage-eating robots• What are the actual chances of a Terminator-style robot war? And much, much more!

Beauty pageants, bad musicals, bizarre diseases, and more: it's all covered in this collection of fascinating trivia and full-color pictures! It's finally here: the book that Uncle John's fans have been asking for: a full-color, illustrated edition featuring the most entertaining articles from the world's bestselling bathroom trivia series! Hundreds of eye-popping photographs add a new dimension to Uncle John's unique blend of trivia, humor, origins, history, science, and oddities. All the reader favorites are included—including dumb crooks, weird news, flubbed headlines, strange lawsuits, quirky quotations—and more. Now they pop off the pages like never before! So stimulate your visual cortexes as you read about... •Weird Beauty Pageants •40 Odd Uses for WD-40 •“Bagpiper's Fungus” and other bizarre diseases •The Wild World of Weird Sports •The “putrified forest” at Tennessee's Body Farm •The origins of Monopoly, the lava lamp, computer viruses, and B movies •World records that are so risky, Guinness won't even report them •The all-time dumbest business decisions •Harrowing stories from history, including the 1906 San Francisco earthquake and the Pilgrims'uncomfortable ride on the Mayflower •The Toxic Travel Guide •How to cook with roadkill, get your TV show on the air, and more •Whatever happened to Nikola Tesla's death ray? •Real-life superheroes... and much, much more!

An e-book this bizarre could only come from the warped minds at the Bathroom Readers'Institute!Uncle John donned his snorkel, dove head-first into the bottomless Bathroom Reader archives, and emerged with this one-of-a-kind e-book: Life Is Strange. Readers will be both delighted and dumbfounded as they scroll through the most peculiar articles that have ever graced our pages. And just make it even weirder, we've added several all-new tidbits to this strangest of brews. So we welcome you into a world of weird featuring… • The harrowing tale of piggybacking planes• The odd cult of The Big Lebowski• The Romance of Proctology and other strange-but-true book titles• The world's kookiest conspiracy theories (Example: “Smurfs are Commies.”)• Christopher Walken speaks: weird events occur• The strangest TV shows ever made• How to cook a shrunken head• The Ethel Merman Disco Album, by Ethel Merman, who hated discoAnd much, much more!

The outdoors roars to life in this ferocious new e-book from Uncle John!Lions and tigers and bears, oh my! And plenty of other wild beasts (including wildebeests)! Whether you find it under a rock, in the sea, or up in the sky, if it has fangs, venom, horns, or an electric tail that really stings, you'll be much safer reading about it from the confines of this entertaining e-book. So let Uncle John be your safari guide as you sink your canines into… • Australia's deadliest…roos • What happens when a ten-ton whale leaps onto a 40-foot sailboat • Uncle John's Stall of Fame: Wild Edition• The gruesome fish that eats other fish…from the inside out • Behind the scenes: real animals that inspired books, music, and movies• The war between invasive and native species • How fire ants saved the life of a fallen skydiver • Which wild animal sayings are all wrong...and why • How fire ants saved the life of a fallen skydiver …And much, much more!

In a world…where movies rule…only one man…can write a super-fun e-book about them!If you love movies as much as we do, you won't want to miss this epic e-book! Several classic Bathroom Reader articles, along with a few new ones, will light up your tiny screen with all-things cinema—from the early days of silent movies to the futuristic world of visual effects. You'll laugh at hilarious bloopers and cringe at stunts gone wrong. And you'll never look at movies the same way again. So please turn off your phones and try not talk while you read about… • Awkward movie tie-in products—like Hunger Games silverware • Pulp Fiction, starring Julia Louis-Dreyfus (and other “Almost Cast” actors)• The enormous cajones of Hollywood's stunt drivers • Our bleak future, as predicted by sci-fi movies • What a movie producer actually does all day• Why previews are called'trailers'• The all-time funnies movie lines • Ebert's best barbs• Who was Oscar? …And much, much more!

It's the most delicious Uncle John's ever!Pizza, chocolate, potatoes, grubs, coffee, croissants... grubs? Yes, grubs! In Attack of the Foodies, no food or beverage is safe from the culinary clutches of Uncle John. From around the world to your dinner table, this tasty e-book heaps a hefty helping of the BRI's all-time most filling food and drink articles, along with a few brand new creations we've been concocting in our kitchen. (Think of this e-book as sort of a “prequel” to our Bathroom Lore e-book. Get it?) So lick your chops, put on your bib, let out a big burp to create same space, and sink your fork into… • Diner lingo• Cheesy poetry• Kitchen science in the 21st century• Terrible foods invented on TV• The Americanization of the Italian pizza pie• Between the bleeps: the wisdom of Chef Gordon Ramsay• When good food turns bad: foods that have tried to kill us• Buffalo Sweat, Smoker's Cough, and other gross (but real) cocktails• And speaking of gross, a do-it-yourself recipe for Jell-O (it isn't pretty) And much, much more!

“There's never been a better quote book for only three bucks.” —Uncle JohnIn the 26-year history of the Bathroom Readers'Institute, we have collected tens of thousands of the world's most memorable quotations. In this e-book, you'll find the very best of them (along with some newly-discovered utterances). From the profound to the sublime, from the witty to the stupid, after reading Mouthing Off, you'll never be at a loss for words again! Some highlights: • Surprisingly wise celebrities, cocky rock stars, and dumb jocks• When commentators misspeak, and other foot-in-mouth moments • What Mark Twain didn't say • Hollywood's all-time weirdest acceptance speeches• Talk show guests deemed too mouthy for TV• Wacky 911 calls and court transcripts• Ancient quotes that still resonate today• Modern pearls of wisdom, including actor (and racing enthusiast) Paul Newman's observation: “It is useless to put on your brakes when you're upside down.” And much, much more!

Restore your faith in humanity in just 50 pages.This very special e-book will lift your spirits with inspiring stories of heroism, overcoming adversity, random acts of kindness, wise thoughts, and some really weird tales of people who benefitted from amazing luck. So put on your rose-colored glasses and curl up with these Uncle John's gems—both old and new—that prove once and for all, the glass really is half full! Some heartwarming examples: • The origin of Mother's Day• Strangers who saved the lives of strangers• The anonymous good deed that led to the “Pay it Forward” movement• How Rodney Dangerfield finally got some respect• The biologist who wrote a book and gave birth to the modern environmental movement • The bus driver who gave a man his shoes• The heroes of September 11th• Crime-stopping kidsAnd much, much more!

Myth meets reality in this one-of-a-kind book that could only come from everyone's favorite folk hero—Uncle John!The ancient Greeks had Zeus; today we have the Burger King…king. In Modern Mythology, you'll meet the world's most fascinating heroes, villains, and corporate spokesthingies. Featuring Bathroom Reader classics plus a few new treasures, you'll discover truths and untruths, and learn the real stories behind some of today's tallest tales. So sit back and let Uncle John take you on an epic journey of modern make-believe! Immerse yourself in… • Gnomes in the gnews• The Whopperknocker, Whirling Whumpus, and other cousins of Sasquatch• Ronald McDonald's relentless rise to the top• On tour with Paul Bunyan• 5 Movies that mythed the point• Who was Kilroy, and why was he here?• Common misconceptions that refuse to go away• Urban Legends that turned out to be true• The secret of the Loch Ness Monster finally explained …and much, much more!

Language lovers rejoice at the best wordplay articles in the history of Uncle John!We asked Roget himself what he thought of Talk Wordy To Me, and he gushed that it's “incredible, magnificent, wonderful, marvelous, spectacular, astonishing, awe-inspiring, tremen…” Then we cut him off because there's only so much room to tell you about all the great articles you'll find in this e-book about word and phrase origins, anagrams, palindromes, puns, jargon, tongue twisters, and the (unintentionally) naughtiest typos ever typed. What else is in here? Lots! A smorgasbord! A cornucopia! A plethora! Myriad! So expand your vocabulary with… • How txting b changin langage lol• The epic story of epic words that are losing their luster (like “epic”)• A pop music anagram quiz • The world's wordiest novelist • Presidential misspeaks that spawned new words • Hilarious headstones from around the world • Words and phrases that are much older than you'd think (like “politically correct” and “truthiness”)• Peter Mark Roget's obsessive-compulsive quest to create his famous thesaurus• What irony isn't• Trivia, with a catch—all answers contain pooAnd much, much more!

The hilarious New York Times bestselling phenomenon and the perfect funny gift!The Darwin Awards are more than just a brand. They're a pop culture phenomenon. With six books and a website that draws in more than a million unique visitors every month, the Darwin Awards rivals The Onion and The Simpsons as one of the biggest humor franchises in the world.Fully illustrated and featuring all-new tales of the marvelously macabre, The Darwin Awards Countdown to Extinction chronicles the astonishing acts of individuals who have taken a swan dive into the shallow end of the gene pool. From attaching a five-horsepower engine to a barstool, to hammering a metal hook into an explosive device, to using a taser to treat a snake bite, these gloriously gruesome incidents prove that the countdown (to human extinction) is well under way. And we won't exit this mortal coil without one last laugh.

A loving look at toys and games—and the people who make and play them—from the past and present.Albert Einstein once said, “Play is the highest form of research.” Uncle John adds: “And it's really fun!” And so is this e-book, which includes several classic articles from the Bathroom Reader archives along with a few all-new entries (including an inside look at the Angry Birds phenomenon). So whether you prefer a pair of dice, a deck of cards, a yo-yo, a game controller, or a doll (er…action figure), you'll find lots to keep you happily occupied in Playtime! Read about… • Classic kids'games from yesteryear• The cops who went Wii on the local news• People who get to play with Legos for a living• Boong-ga Boong-ga, and other odd Japanese video games• The little-known (and ironic) story of Monopoly• The origins of dice, Uno, bobbleheads, and Scrabble• The dark secret behind Amazing Sea-Monkeys• The fall of Atari and the rise of Nintendo• How to talk like a poker player And much, much more!

Hundreds of incredible origin stories, ranging from everyday items to social customs to history-altering inventions.Uncle John's Where'd That Come From? delivers the true stories behind all sorts of things, even things you never thought of as having origins. Covering a wide range of topics--pop culture, science, sports, politics, customs, superstitions, language, and more--you'll discover the most engrossing origin stories from the BRI's deep archives, as well as some all-new “origin”al material! Find out about… - Why the number seven is considered lucky- An airplane in ancient Egypt, and other “OOPAs” (Out Of Place Artifacts)- Who put the hole in a doughnut, the K in K-mart, and the e in e-book- Automotive firsts--including the gas pump, the solar-powered car, and the drag race- The ancient games that led to golf, and the story of the boomerang- Louis Perrier, Earl Grey, Mrs. Paul, and other tasty namesakes- The origins of toothpaste, the color purple, the Ming Dynasty, Valentine's Day, the recycle symbol, Captain Kirk, “gobbledygook,” and much, much more!

A collection of crazy science facts on everything from rocket ships and death rays to atoms, experiments, and bizarre scientists. From the amazing to the amusing, this byte-sized collection will bring you the inside stories behind earth-shattering discoveries, accidental inventions, and outlandish studies. Featuring Uncle John's most mind-bending science articles—along with a few all-new “experiments”—this book will make you think, make you laugh, and make you ask yourself, “What the heck were they thinking?” Get ready to cackle like a mad scientist as you uncover the truth about... · The mystery of Tesla's death ray machine · How to reanimate the dead · The next space race: Interstellar travel · Serendipity: The origins of the microwave oven and Silly Putty · The eccentric Dr. Einstein · The simple science behind nuclear fission · “Pigeons'Ability to Discriminate Between Monet and Picasso” and other strange-but-true studies · Toilets in Spaaaaace! And much, much more

For fans of Gone With the Wind on the 75th anniversary of the classic film, this three-volume eBook Collection pulls together two bestselling biographies, one of author Margaret Mitchell and one of film star Vivien Leigh, and combines them with The Complete Gone with the Wind Trivia Book to give readers a deep insight into the lives of those who created this timeless masterpiece.

Hundreds of highly entertaining facts, quotes, and more!Weed. Pot. Mary Jane. Grass.No matter what you call marijuana, it's still dope.Bursting with mind-blowing marijuana facts, this all-inclusive look at cannabis offers hundreds of reasons to celebrate your favorite herb. Each page highlights weed's best features with unbelievable stories and trivia, cool ways to inhale, and quotations from legendary stoners. With details on everything from infusing alcohol with THC to get a better high to the history behind the world's oldest weed stash, this book keeps you entertained long after your buzz wears off.Dope: Because getting high doesn't mean you can't learn something awesome.

The twenty-seventh Bathroom Reader in the beloved, bizarre trivia series with more than fifteen million copies in print! At a whopping 544 pages, Uncle John's Canoramic Bathroom Reader is overflowing with everything that Bathroom Readers'Institute fans have come to expect from this bestselling trivia series: fascinating history, silly science, obscure origins... plus fads, blunders, wordplay, quotes, and a few surprises (such as some of the “creative” methods people have used to pay off their alimony). And yes, Uncle John's latest masterpiece is guaranteed to keep you on the edge of your can! So hang on tight as you read about... • Hairy superstitions • Animals who act like people • The Mother of the Father of our Country • Really BIG Things • Eugene Vidocq—the world's first private eye • Bill Gates and his “Toilet Challenge” • Unclassified: The story of the Freedom of Information Act • How to behave like a gentleman... 16th century style • Great Gushers: The world's most incredible oil strikes • Who's the Suzette in Crepe Suzette? • Happy Sewerage Day! And much, much more!

Uncle John Plunges into Canada... in color!Uncle John and the folks at the Bathroom Readers'Institute love all things Canadian and figure that just because we weren't lucky enough to be born in the Great White North doesn't mean we can't devote an entire Bathroom Reader to the cause... and this time we're doing it in Technicolor! Uncle John's Plunges into Canada (Illustrated Edition) is full of cool trivia and fascinating facts about the greatest country in the world, but now it's jam-packed with photographs and illustrations too! So put away the hockey gear, grab a plate of Kraft dinner, and join us. Whether you're a true Canuck or just always wanted to be one, this book is for you!