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John Green plays ‘Mythbusters’ with 30 lifehacks in 10 minutes

Green puts the Internet's old wives' tales to the test in his latest Mental Floss video.

 

Gaby Dunn

Internet Culture

Posted on Oct 12, 2013   Updated on Jun 1, 2021, 4:23 am CDT

In a new YouTube video for his Mental Floss salon, author and Vlogbrother John Green tests out 30 of the Internet’s favorite “lifehacks” to see if they’ll actually make your life any easier.

Some work: opening a beer with your computer charger, using the chip bag to seal the chips and also using it as a chip bowl, chewing gum to keep you from crying while chopping onions, and using a drinking straw to remove the stem from a strawberry.

But many don’t: using your sunglasses to hold up your phone for better video viewing, opening a wine bottle with a hammer and nail, using solo cups to make laptop speakers louder, and putting a glass of water in the microwave with reheated pizza to keep the crust crispy.

Although Green loves to debunk things in his Mental Floss videos—see “79 Common Mispronunciations”—most of these life tips do work somewhat, including the surprising use of Doritos as fire kindling. Weird!

Photo via YouTube

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*First Published: Oct 12, 2013, 11:00 am CDT