We've all heard someone called so-and-so the second and others called blah-blah-blah Jr. but what makes someone a "Jr" as opposed to a "II"? Thanks to Mental Floss' Big Question, now we know. 

It seems a Jr. is generally the child of a living person they have been named for, while IIs, IIIs, IVs, etc. are all named for close relatives who may or may not still be alive. One particularly strange case that manages to combine both titles is that of George Foreman and his sons who are all named after him:

Of course, there’s always George Foreman, who has five sons named after himself. And since “Jr. Jr.” isn’t really a thing, George’s sons are George Edward Foreman Jr., George III, George IV, George V, and George VI. (Don’t worry; they all have nicknames.)

Learn more about jrs and IIs, including why women tend to not have these titles over at Mental Floss.

Most people are familiar with the iconic look of the side mounted Graflex flash, the one that's always attached to those bellow-bodied folding Graflex cameras in old movies and TV shows.

This bright flash was often used as a comedic element, something that would blind the characters and deliver a laugh, but did you know it was also used to make movie history?

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This video by DigitalRev In-Focus reveals how crafty prop builders used the battery tube from the Graflex flash to create the iconic lightsaber Obi Wan passed on to Luke and inadvertantly made movie history.

-Via Boing Boing

The Secret Of NIMH might not be Don Bluth's highest grossing film (that honor goes to Anastasia), nor is it his most popular film of all time (that's split between An American Tail and The Land Before Time).

But the animated adaptation of Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH was Don's first film after he, John Pomeroy and Gary Goldman left Disney in 1979 to form Don Bluth Productions, and it totally blew 80s kids away.

The Secret of NIMH had suspense, intrigue and mice in mortal danger. There were sword fights, an old wizard and a magic amulet, and the characters are so sympathetic viewers can't help but hiss at the wicked rats led by Jenner and root for the Brisby family.

Speaking of the Brisbys- their name in the book is "Frisby" but Wham-O, makers of the Frisbee, made them change the name because it was too similar.

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There's also the matter of Jenner's reluctant sidekick going nameless in the film, and since he's the one who puts an end to Jenner he deserves his name to be known, so here's to you Sullivan!

But what's up with the name NIMH? It stands for National Institute of Mental Health, which was only mentioned by the Farmer's Wife once in the film, but explains a lot about those rodents going psycho!

Read 12 Facts About 'The Secret Of NIMH' at mental_floss

McDonald's has always tried to personalize the experience of dining at their restaurants in every way possible, from the (formerly clowny) decor to the food packaging to the little golden arches on every napkin.

They even have the largest drinking straws in the fast food biz, which some people feel are partly responsible for the rise of obesity in America, and now McDonald's is about to make history again with their new S.T.R.A.W.

It stands for Suction Tube for Reverse Axial Withdrawal, and it's the most over-engineered straw ever created, made to optimize consumption of McDonald's new half-mint half-chocolate shake.

Since no-one wants their chocolate to mint ratio to be compromised by poor technology, mcdonald’s turned to two highly-qualified engineering firms, JACE and NK labs to create the STRAW.

The STRAW is a J-shaped, snorkel-like vessel that provides optimal flavor flow dynamics. the tube has side openings to suck in both layers at once, and is engineered to work just as well at the bottom of the shake as it did at the top.

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The fact that McDonald's hired two engineering firms to create a new milkshake straw may seem a bit crazy, but if you're a fan of milkshakes you know you wanna try one!

-Via Designboom

Travel Quote by Early Kirky

Everyone wishes they could vacation forever, roaming where they want to even if that means roaming around the world.

But between our jobs, domestic responsibilities and limited funding the dream of vacationing forever must forever remain a dream...or does it?

If you wear a vacation-themed t-shirt from the NeatoShop the travel fun never has to end, and now until February 26th all shirts in the shop are up to 20% off!

Vacationing is usually all about the destination

Titan Island by Andriu

And all about doing something you love somewhere you've never been before

Gorn Fishin' by Captain RibMan

But vacationing is ultimately all about being in a vacation state of mind!

Destination Unknown by SGMStudios

Jean-Michel Basquiat didn't live long enough to see how his loose, abstract style would inspire artists to make a beautiful mess, nor did he get to see the awesome movie about him starring Jeffrey Wright.

But while he lived he saw damn near every side of life in NYC, from squatting in abandoned buildings with junkies to living the lush life with wealthy patrons in artists' lofts and penthouses.

Basquiat saw so much more than other young people, and his vision made him famous once he started sharing it with us all through his paintings.

These rare photos were taken by his girlfriend Alexis Adler in the East Village apartment they shared in 1979, at a time when young Basquiat was still free- free from fame, free from drugs, and free to really enjoy life.

See Rare Photos Of A Young Basquiat In His East Village Home here

Zombie lore has changed quite a bit since the first Night Of The Living Dead film, and zombies have gone from being strictly undead eating machines to humans afflicted with a life-altering virus.

That means if and when a cure is found for their condition zombies may be able to rejoin human society, that is, if they're no longer seen as a threat:

In the aftermath of a zombie outbreak, zombies are cured and exiled to secluded camps. There has been talk about rehabilitating post-zombies back into society. Steve, the journalist reporting on the case, thinks the zombies still pose a threat to society. He ventures into one of these camps to prove to the world that rehabilitation is out the question.

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"Less Than Human" was created by a team of students at The Animation Workshop in Denmark, and it has certainly left me hungry to see more!

-Via Laughing Squid

From misogynists to sex addicts, dictators are obviously unbalanced people and their sex lives only serve to prove how unhinged they are. Over on TopTenz you can learn about ten dictators and their torrid sex lives. For example, even though Mussolini had tons of mistresses, he loathed women -with the exception of one particular mistress. And Spanish dictator Francisco Franco was celibate most of his life, but did seem to have a thing for his mother. 

Read more details of their stores and more at TopTenz.

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As a child my sister was terrified of escalators and I never understood why, until one of my friends almost lost a toe to some particularly sharp teeth on the edge of an escalator.

He was wearing flip flops at the time so the argument could be made that it was as much his fault as the escalator's, but seeing his toe after that incident made me switch to stairs for years to come.

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Escalators are safe until they decide to drop out beneath your feet or gobble up your shoe, so ride that moving staircase with caution, folks- and keep all your toes where they belong!

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See Even If You're Just A Little Nervous About Escalators, You Won't Make It Through This Post here

Goats are interesting critters with fascinating minds and bold personalities, and that's why they're popular pets both on and off the ranch.

Sadly, some goats are treated poorly by humans, but if they're as lucky as Pearl the goat they end up in a rescue center like the Gentle Barn in Tennessee, where they can meet new, and much nicer, human friends.

And even though Pearl was abused by her former owner she still has lots of love to give to her favorite human friend- the UPS man.

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Read Pearl The Rescued Goat Is In Love...With The UPS Man at Huffington Post

People use the words coffin and casket interchangeably when talking about funeral arrangements, but morticians know there's more than just a price difference between the two-the difference is in the shape and function.

Coffins are the octagonal burial containers made wider at the shoulder and tapered at the feet to fit the body, and they're used pretty much exclusively for burial.

But by the mid-19th century undertakers had become funeral directors, and they needed something more luxurious and showy than a coffin for viewing purposes- so the casket was created.

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Caskets are lined and typically rectangular shaped burial containers with hinged lids and decorative elements, and nowadays caskets are often custom made to suit the deceased to a T.

-Via mental_floss

In the world of sports trading cards professional athletes get all the love, but what about all those professional actors who play athletes in movies and TV shows? Don't they deserve their own commemorative trading cards too?

Illustrator Cuyler Smith clearly agrees, because he has created artwork for two different sets of trading cards starring the stars in their sportiest roles.

There's a card for Danny McBride as Kenny Powers, Keanu Reeves as Shane Falco, Michael J. Fox as "Teen Wolf" Scott Howard, and Chevy Chase as Ty Webb in Caddyshack 1 and 2 too.

Na-na-na-na indeed sir! Cuyler's way too cool illustrations for Trading Cards 2, the trading card set of my unathletic dreams, is currently being shown at Gallery 1988 now through March 7th.

They'll sweep you off your feet!

-Via Laughing Squid

There are a lot of weird people out there on the internet, but every now and then you find a new type of weirdness you may never have encountered before. Today is one of those days.

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That's because this brave stupid genius utterly insane man has promised to eat a picture of Jason Segel every day until Jason Segel eats a picture of him in return. He's hashtagged his campaign #EatMyFaceSegel.

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Some people think he's just trying to become internet famous, but he certainly seems to be legitimately obsessed with the actor, even getting a tattoo of his name yesterday, which was the fourth day of his project so far. 

Via Geek Tyrant

I'm far from the person who believes no one should take children to a restaurant as I've seen plenty of well behaved kids eating out, but we've all seen those monster children at restaurants whose parents completely ignore them. But the worst kid you've ever seen while dining out probably doesn't compare at all to the terrible youngsters in this Thrillist article. While all the stories are pretty good, the last one really emphasizes how terrible some parents are while dining out with their offspring: 

And that's just the beginning of the awfulness. You can read the rest of the story -and all the others at Thrillist.

When cartoons were wholly crafted by hand animators used all kinds of tricks to speed up the process, and one of their tricks made a character's hands more visible, emotive and easier to animate-they put gloves on 'em.

This small change made a world of difference for early animators who were discovering rounder was better in a character design, and simplification saved precious time during production.

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This toon-tastic video by Vox shows how gloves became an iconic part of a cartoon's character design, and how Mickey's gloves started it all.

-Via DesignTAXI