The first working escalator was built and installed at Coney Island in 1896, and even though the steps on the first escalator were made of cast iron later models made by Otis used steps made of wood to reduce weight and production costs.

As rickety and scary as the ride would have been on a wooden escalator it also would have been visually appealing, and the rich, warm look of the wooden tread somehow looks far less terrifying than those metal fangs we have today.

Australian artist Chris Fox used an 80-year-old wooden escalator recently replaced by a metal one to create his amazing sculpture Interloop, and now those classic wooden stairs will roll on forever in the Wynyard Station of the Sydney Underground.

-Via design you trust

Coca-Cola is such a big hit around the world that some people refer to all colas as "Coke", and even though the syrupy brown beverage invented by druggist John S. Pemberton in 1886 is bad for your health it's still a classic taste people crave.

In fact, people like the taste so much they rallied to preserve the classic recipe when New Coke came out in 1986, and yet they kept selling New Coke as "Coke II" until 2002, hoping it would catch on because it was cheaper to make.

So what is the taste of Coke anyway?

(Image Link)

According to a recipe discovered by Atlanta historian Charles Salter, who found it among a pile of documents belonging to inventer John Pemberton, Coke contains lemon oil, nutmeg oil, vanilla, cinnamon caramel and coriander, among many others.

(Image Link)

And one could say Coke also knew the recipe for success when it came to making oddball digi-character Max Headroom a star in the 80s:

The bizarre, pseudo-animated Max Headroom character was created as a virtual television star in the UK by record company Chrysalis in 1985. Sensing his appeal for young consumers, Coca-Cola licensed Headroom that same year and made him the center of their ad campaign with a series of commercials directed by Ridley Scott. According to Coke, the spots helped Headroom gain a 76 percent recognition rating among teenagers.

Read 12 Refreshing Facts About Coca-Cola at Mental Floss

Bats got a bad reputation when they became associated with vampires, witches and horror movies like Cujo, but in reality bats are gentle, and often skittish, critters who just want to hang with their bat buds in peace.

So when a human offers to help them out they'll usually accept without a fight, but wild bats normally aren't as cute or patient about it as Harry the bat is while a human from Batzilla the Bat gently removes the netting

(YouTube Link)

The Batzilla the Bat netting fund spreads awareness about how dangerous most netting gardeners use to protect their crops is for the wild bats of Australia and around the world:

As we live in a sub tropical climate we have massive problems with gardeners using cheap killer netting to protect their fruit trees from predation from bats, birds and possums and thousands of animals are tortured and killed each year in large aperture netting.

Never use any netting you can poke a finger through as it is deadly to wildlife.

-Via Laughing Squid

(Via @abi_slade)

Kids love to act like their parents are totally unhip, uncool and out of touch, usually because their friends think the road to coolsville intersects with too cool for school lane.

But what these youngsters don't get is cool is a state of mind- it's not about bringing other people down, it's about elevating your parental coolness levels by setting the trend and wowing the wee ones who dare to talk trash.

(Via @ninacaballero27)

Cool people know the power a new piece of tech can have over the unhip and underaged, but when their parents bust out a new device and say "yep, no big deal, just messin' with my cool tech from the future" the wee ones go "whoa".

(Via @YasminParr)

See 19 Parents Who Are In 3017 While We're In 2017 here

Celebrities are known for making poor decisions when it comes to partying, social media posts and how they spend their money, but they have the worst judgment by far when it comes to getting tattoos.

You'd think people who are constantly in the spotlight would think twice before getting a crappy tat applied to their famous skin, but more often than not the tats celebs choose to get are the worst.

So GQ asked professional tattoo artists and hosts of Spike TV's Ink Master Chris Nuñez and Oliver Peck to critique celebrity tats, and needless to say they are definitely not Beliebers or part of the Rihanna Navy.

(YouTube Link)

Batsy isn't the only one who has witnessed, and done, some dark deeds in the DC Universe, because the Flash has quickly become one seriously dark dude!

(If you watch the CW show then you probably know some of these storylines already, but if not be warned there are spoilers ahead.)

Barry Allen has had his psyche damaged by a past he cannot escape (the death of his mother) and the earth shattering results of his actions (Flashpoint) but nobody got in to Barry's head like his nemesis Zoom.

Zoom made it his mission in life to take down the Flash no matter the cost, and as far as super villains without a conscience go Zoom ranks up there with the likes of Darkseid and the Joker in terms of body count.

But one kill in particular caused Barry to forego his heroic ethics and kill Zoom with impunity- the death of his wife Iris West.

Zoom murdered Iris because he was in love with her too, and because he had a psychotic infatuation with watching Barry suffer, but despite his anger the Flash let Zoom live- so Zoom showed up a few years later to kill Barry's new fiance on their wedding day.

Barry couldn't bear to see another woman he loved get killed by Zoom, so he took matters into his own hands- by snapping Zoom's neck before he could deliver the killing blow. It was a justifiable homicide, but it still took its toll on Barry's state of mind...

See 6 Flash Comics Way Darker Than Any Batman Story here

Black metal fans aren't known for their sense of humor, and they seem like they'd be too busy applying corpse paint to their faces and adding spikes to every article of clothing they own to read comics.

But it turns out black metal fans laugh, cry and have hearts that bleed just like the rest of us, and they even form little black metal families that pray to the dark gods of metal before sitting down to supper.

Or maybe these black metal families only exist in the panels of these Belzebubs comics by Finnish artist JP Ahonen, because a real-life family of black metal fanatics would get far too many visits from social workers...and exorcists.

See more from Embrace Your Dark Side With These Awesome Black Metal Comics here

You don't have to be a cinematographer to notice that soap operas always looked a bit different than the other shows on TV, and while most people chalk this up to cheap production values there's more to it than that.

Soap operas had to deal with a lot of problems other TV shows didn't have, such as evenly lighting an entire set so the characters can move around, and multiple cameras can be used, without resetting the lights.

They also shot soaps on videotape instead of film, which made the whole show look "off" when combined with the lighting:

Backlighting, part of the three-point lighting setup often used in television production, helps "lift" actors out of the background. This is especially useful for productions that are shot on a lower-quality medium and in small interior sets, which soaps often are. The problem is that shooting on videotape on a small set can reduce the subtlety of the lighting technique. Actors in the foreground often wind up very noticeably backlit, something that doesn't happen on shows with larger sets, or shows that are recorded on film.

Read Why Did Soap Operas Look DIfferent From Other TV Shows? at Mental Floss

I've been a choco-gobbler since I was a kid, and I gobbled up novelty-shaped chocolate just like the rest, but some kids get a box of novelty chocolates and refuse to eat it because it looks cool.

Back in 1910 a little girl named Eileen Margaret Elmes received a tin full of Red Riding Hood themed novelty chocolates shaped like characters from the story, each of which was dressed in tissue paper clothing.

Eileen loved the little figures so much she refused to eat them, so she stashed them away and kept them relatively untouched throughout her entire life. She passed away in 2007 at 99-years-old, leaving her box of chocolates up for auction:

Inevitably, time has taken its toll on the chocolates made decades before sell-by dates were even invented. They display a white sheen of age that would put off the most ardent chocoholics but, when you open the box, the delicious smell of cocoa still fills your nostrils.And now, for the first time in a century, the chocolates have been publicly revealed at Hansons Auctioneers in Etwall, near Derby …The box of Little Red Riding Hood Pascall’s Chocolate Novelties will be sold on December 19 at Hansons Auctioneers, Heage Lane, Etwall, Derbyshire.

(YouTube Link)

-Via Laughing Squid

The name "crooked cottage" conjures up images of fairy tale domiciles inhabited by witches and wolves, but in this story the Crooked Cottage earned its name when the foundation eroded, causing the cottage to lean.

This strange rural home in Hetfordshire, England once had a woman and her father living in it, but the old man died in 1971 and the old woman was taken to live in hospice in 2003, leaving the Crooked Cottage abandoned until 2012.

That's when photographer and urban explorer Toby Batchelor ventured into the abandoned home to find it untouched for 9 years, right down to the bed that was still made up and a calendar dating back to the 50s:

“The building itself was so tiny, like something out of a film,” Tony said. “It had only one upstairs room, and the whole building had began to be reclaimed by the elements. Locations like these don’t come up regularly, and this one was kept secret for a long time.”

(YouTube Link)

-Via Little Things

Employment seekers may have a hard time finding a job if they only look on Craigslist or job sites like Monster or Indeed, but if you're serious about getting a job you should do your homework and see who hires the most people in your state.  

And in 22 states that means going to work for Walmart, who is America's largest employer according to this map created by Visual Capitalist of the largest employers by state.

In states like California, Hawaii, New Mexico, Wisconsin and New York you should head to the universities to look for work, otherwise your best bet is to get into health services or medicine if you're looking for a gig in a non-Walmart state.

But let's be realistic- when all else fails there's a Walmart in all 50 states, and they're always hiring!

See full sized map here

-Via Mental Floss

Cats don't have to adhere to a 9 to 5 schedule like their poor overworked humans, and because they're free to do their feline thang whenever they want many cats think the middle of the night is the best time to get frisky.

This naturally bugs the hell out of their humans, who are trying to sleep so they can make the most of the daylight, but cats are too busy scurrying around the house, knocking stuff over and tearing up the couch to care how their humans feel.

(YouTube Link)

Comedian Gus Johnson put on a pair of ears and some whiskers so he could properly channel the spirit of a cat when they're at their most rambunctious- at 3 a.m. when their humans dare try to dream.

-Via Laughing Squid

Foodies who like to sample dishes from all over the world have at least some experience with Indian food, and once they've seen how many interesting and exotic flavor combos Indian restaurants have to offer they're hooked for life.

But bland and unadventurous eaters in the world are afraid to give Indian food a chance, usually because they're afraid of spice, don't dig curry or have been told some BS about it being unsafe without giving Indian food a chance.

Vindaloo

Vindaloo is a south Indian dish with many variations. The version you’ll likely see in an Indian restaurant will include some kind of meat base cooked with red chilies, vinegar, garlic, and sometimes potatoes. In India, the dish is known for its unmitigated spiciness. But at your neighborhood Indian joint, chances are the heat has been tamed. Unless you ask for it.

Maybe if they knew Indian restaurants serve up more than curry they'd give it a chance? The Takeout created a "cheat sheet" to Indian restaurant menus that takes all the mystery out of strange sounding dishes like Vindaloo, Chana masala and Rogan josh:

With most Indian dishes, you can select your choice of meat. When it comes to rogan josh, lamb is the only option. The key to its smoky and sweet taste is the base, which consists of onions that have been browned in oil or ghee (clarified butter) until essentially caramelized, as well as the heavy dose of bracing, warming spices like whole cardamom and clove. You might see on a menu that the dish has chilies, but don’t worry—the chilies used in rogan josh are usually mild ones. If you’re at a good Indian restaurant, your rogan josh might be finished with a touch of saffron—an expensive spice with a delicate, floral flavor.

Read A Cheat Sheet To Indian Restaurant Menus at The Takeout

Christmas cards usually have either a traditional or whimsical appearance in order to appeal to the masses, who want to give out cards that adhere to the classic ideas of Christmas so as not to rock the sleigh.

But what if you really hate the person you're sending a Christmas card to?

That's highly unlikely, since most people wouldn't waste the money or energy sending a mean card to their enemies, but what about those of us who are tired of all the cheesy Christmas crap and want something that better suits our lowbrow sensibilities?

Well, believe it or not, rude and offensive Christmas cards have been around for a really long time, but nowadays instead of hiding the dirt under a snowy layer of double entendre greeting card makers just let it all hang out.

See more Rude And Offensive Christmas Cards at Dangerous Minds (NSFW)

Cracking up at the thought of someone pooping may seem a bit juvenile to most, but the image of a dragon crapping a brick of gold is just plain funny no matter your age or maturity level.

Seeing a centaur poop on a human toilet is similarly hilarious, especially when they struggle to wipe, but a merman sitting on a toilet is anticlimactic because they don't have a butt.

However, put all of these mythical poopers together and you've got the making of one fantastic commercial for the Squatty Potty!

(YouTube Link)

-Via Geeks Are Sexy