Practice: Science
It is a clear to see that Mental Floss’s science tag has a lot of science sections similar to what you might see when taking the TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language). The TOEFL is heavy on Science! Mental Floss contains a variety of science topics that are similar to the types of content you will be exposed to in your TOEFLs. Some examples of articles on Mental Floss that are most similar to articles that you would find on a TOEFL reading section are bats and how they hunt, why dinosaurs became extinct, and the chemistry of coffee.
There are some articles on Mental Floss that are less similar to what you may see on a TOEFL reading section and therefore shouldn’t be heavily relied upon for studying for the TOEFL but would make for great light and fun reading to help you practice general English skills. Subjects covered in these articles include: hair (aesthetics), healthy habits, and personal health.
The final two science tag articles are listed under Genetics & Evolution and Space Exploration. Both these science tags will be discussed below in detail.
Practice: Genetics
This scientific topic on Mental Floss is almost 100% TOEFL-like in terms of subject matter and vocabulary. While nothing on Mental Floss’s genetics web page (or the rest of the site) is exactly like what you’d see on the TOEFL, pretty much every genetics article either focuses on or at least touches on a topic that would fit in well on the exam. And TOEFL vocabulary is everywhere in the readings from this category.
Practice: Space
The TOEFL test regularly includes reading passages and lectures about the planets, stars, and so on. Mental Floss also has a selection of space-themed articles. There is again plenty of material that is similar in format and approach to the TOEFL including two examples: a reading passage about astronomy during the early part of the 20th century and a research article detailing weather conditions on the planet Mars. Additionally, you will see here a few articles related to the planets but that are not quite so much TOEFL related, like this one on how to create a cake that looks like Jupiter (I thought it was great).
The TOEFL really does cover animals and vocabulary that relates to animals quite frequently. Mental Floss has a whole tag for this topic! As with the other topics above, you can find articles on animals that use a more formalized vocabulary and thus are closer in language structure to the TOEFL exam than articles about pet care, animal-shaped toys, etc. In case you are looking to take a break from studying for the test or just want something fun to read check out the less formal articles.
Practice: Oceans
Videos and pictures of the sea and the things in it look really cool. Mental Floss knows this, and they’ve filled their ocean articles with pictures and film clips. As a result, the ocean-related article son this website are a bit short on text. Still, these shorter passages often contain the same kinds of information and vocabulary you’d find in TOEFL readings and lectures about the ocean.
The article that accompanies this stunning video of a giant swarm of crabs is short but still TOEFL-like. The same goes for the text in Mental Floss’s collection of photos and fun facts about oysters. And the same can also be said for this historical look at ancient maps of the sea. Speaking of history, the next Mental Floss topic we’ll take a look at is….
Practice: History
Mental Floss’s History category has some not-so-TOEFL-like articles on tourism (visiting historical places) and celebrity gossip (about famous people from past decades and centuries).
But there are also quite a few articles with vocabulary and subject matter similar to the TOEFL exam. There’s a nice TOEFL-like reading about units of measurement from past historical periods. And there are plenty of articles about past political leaders in the United States, a topic that’s a big TOEFL favorite. In fact, both Magoosh TOEFL and Mental Floss have offered reading practice about American “founding father” Paul Revere!
Mental Floss also has an additional separate history-related category of reading practice—war. War is not quite as TOEFL-like as other historical topics. But Mental Floss’s war articles are definitely useful for TOEFL practice. We’ll look at this website’s articles on war and a few other less TOEFL-like but still good topics in part 3 of this series.
Practice: War
The majority of TOEFL International Reading Test Articles do not cover many topics that are primarily related to the topic of war, as ETS aims to be neutral and has chosen to focus on cultural neutrality within the test and its topics. Wars, whether they are ancient or modern, often bring about a variety of emotions that may be culturally based.
However, I still encourage you to take advantage of the Mental Floss article archives for the purpose of practicing for the TOEFL. The articles from Mental Floss that are focused on wars have a more scholarly and academic approach than most of their other articles, making them more compatible with the tone of the TOEFL. Furthermore, they will allow you to develop your reading skills using many of the verb forms that are prevalent throughout the TOEFL in its explanation of items in history, as well as to examine the ways that the past tense forms of English are used.
If you are interested in studying war as part of your historical research, there are a number of recommended subcategories for the two World Wars.
Practice: Art
The arts are covered in the TOEFL, although TOEFL materials usually limit limit art content to the history of art. In contrast, Mental Floss’s art page focuses more on pop art and entertainment, or on art tutorials for people who want to learn how to draw.
Still, there is some TOEFL-relevant material in Mental Floss’s art section. This article about famed American mural painter Thomas Benton is of the most TOEFL-like Mental Floss art readings. But most of Mental Floss’s TOEFL-like art readings are hidden under a different category, which I’ll mention next….
Practice: Architecture
Architecture is a topic that can definitely come up on the TOEFL. And the types of historical write-ups and art analyses you’ll find in TOEFL Reading are also present in many of the architecture articles on Mental Floss. Again, you’ll also find some content that is better for general reading practice and not TOEFL studies–write-ups on the homes of celebrities, tour guides for interesting landmarks, that sort of thing.
The takeaway
Bear in mind that the readings in Mental Floss are not identical to what you’d see on the TOEFL. Although the vocabulary and subject matter are often in line with the TOEFL exam, the writing style is less formal and more playful. But this entertaining tone can help you have fun and develop an interest in topics during your practice.
