Hey everyone! I’m Elliot Morgan, and you might know me from my YouTube channels or Mashable. Welcome to Mental Floss on YouTube! Did you know there’s a job called a planetarium technician? This person handles the sound and projection equipment for planetarium shows, creating special effects, picking music, and syncing the commentary with the visuals. That’s just one of the many unusual jobs I’m going to share with you today!
Let’s start with something sweet: an ice cream taste tester. These professionals sample about a pint of ice cream each day. They also come up with new flavor ideas and combinations. But it’s not always easy; some testers spent four years finding the perfect brownie flavor!
If you’re not into dairy, how about being a dog food taster? Some companies hire humans to taste pet food to ensure quality. You need a good sense of taste and smell to know what pets and their owners will like.
Another interesting job is a poison taster. This person checks food for poison before elected officials eat it. In the U.S., tasters oversee food preparation when the president dines out.
Moving on to another food-related job, a banana room cutter prepares banana shipments by cutting them from their stalks. If all this food talk is making you hungry, let’s explore some other jobs!
Odor testers can earn around $39,000 a year by smelling perfumes, wines, and air fresheners. However, if they work for a deodorant company, they might have to smell armpits occasionally!
A porta potty cleaner uses a tank and vacuum wand to clean portable toilets. They also restock supplies and clean the walls.
Hazmat divers are called to repair pipes, recover lost objects, or even bodies. They dive in places like sewage ponds and oil sludge.
On a brighter note, a professional Lego builder uses Legos to create amazing projects. There are only 12 certified professionals, including Sean Kenny, who builds replicas of famous buildings.
A professional RC vehicle racer travels the world racing radio-controlled vehicles for prize money. It’s like living a childhood dream!
An amusement park ride tester checks rides for any faults or dangers, ensuring they’re safe for everyone.
Circus laborers take care of big animals, loading and unloading them and their equipment.
A deer urine farmer collects and sells whitetail urine for hunting purposes. They can earn between $33,000 and $93,000 per deer each year.
Roadkill collectors find and dispose of animal carcasses on roads, following state laws.
Frog pickers work for biological suppliers, preserving animals for educational purposes.
Crime scene cleaners are responsible for cleaning up after various incidents, which isn’t a job for the faint-hearted.
Some mattress companies hire people to jump on mattresses to compress the cotton material.
A comic book inspector checks classic comics for damage and seals them in tamper-proof cases.
Museum technicians mold and restore skeleton parts and reassemble fragmented artifacts.
A snowmaker creates snow for ski resorts using equipment that turns water and air into snow.
A kelp cutter uses a mower from a boat to harvest kelp from the water.
Medical schools hire fake patients to help future doctors practice their bedside manner.
At a casino, a Kino Rider takes bets, operates machines, and calls out numbers.
Box toe buffers ensure shoes are perfectly polished.
Band salvagers recycle cotton bales by straightening and cutting bands for reuse.
In 2010, six people in Moscow stayed in a mock spacecraft for 490 days to see if deep space travel was possible without going insane.
Thanks for watching Mental Floss on YouTube! We love answering your mind-blowing questions. This week’s question from Danny Harwood is about who invented the straw. Marvin Stone invented the modern drinking straw in 1888. Before that, people used rye grass straws, which weren’t very pleasant.
If you have a question you’d like answered, leave it in the comments, and we’ll try to answer it. Thanks again for watching!
Imagine you could invent any unusual job. What would it be? Describe the job, its responsibilities, and why it would be important or fun. Share your ideas with the class and see who comes up with the most creative job!
Choose one of the unusual occupations from the article and act out a day in the life of someone with that job. Use props or costumes if you like, and present your role play to the class. This will help you understand the unique challenges and rewards of the job.
Pick one unusual occupation from the article and research more about it. Find out what skills are needed, the average salary, and any interesting facts. Create a short presentation to share your findings with the class.
Pair up with a classmate and take turns being the interviewer and the interviewee for one of the unusual jobs. Prepare questions and answers that relate to the specific job duties and skills required. This will help you practice communication and critical thinking skills.
Write a short story or diary entry from the perspective of someone working in one of the unusual occupations. Describe their daily routine, challenges, and any interesting encounters they might have. Share your story with the class to explore different writing styles and perspectives.
Sure! Here’s a sanitized version of the YouTube transcript:
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Hey guys, I’m Elliot Morgan. You might recognize me from my YouTube channels or Mashable. This is Mental Floss on YouTube, and did you know that you could get a job as a planetarium technician? This person is in charge of the sound and projection equipment used in planetarium shows. They create special effects, select music, and synchronize the recorded commentary with the visual presentation. That’s just the first of many unusual occupations I’m going to tell you about today.
Let’s start with something fun: an ice cream taste tester. Professional testers sample around a pint of ice cream a day. They also brainstorm ideas for new flavors and taste combinations. However, it can get tough at times; for example, testers at a well-known brand spent four years looking for the perfect brownie flavor.
For those who prefer not to consume dairy, there’s the job of a dog food taster. A few companies hire humans to taste test pet food for quality control. For this job, you actually need pretty nuanced senses, knowing both what animals like to taste and what owners like to smell.
Another interesting job is that of a poison taster, which is not as bad as it sounds. This person tastes food of elected officials to check for poison. American tasters oversee all food preparation when the president goes out.
While we’re on the topic of food, a banana room cutter prepares shipments of bananas by cutting hands of bananas from stocks. If all that food talk made you hungry, let’s move on to some other jobs.
Being an odor tester can earn you around $39,000 a year. These are the people who smell perfumes, wines, and air fresheners. The downside? If they work for a deodorant company, the job might involve smelling the occasional armpit.
A porta potty cleaner puts on a nose clip and uses a tank and vacuum wand to clean the contents of a porta potty. They then restock it with supplies and clean its walls.
Hazmat divers are called when pipes need to be repaired, objects are lost, or bodies need to be recovered. They swim in places like sewage-contaminated ponds and oil sludge.
Now, let’s move on to something a little nicer: a professional Lego builder. This artist uses Legos to construct projects. Lego lists 12 certified professionals, including Sean Kenny, who was commissioned to create replicas of famous buildings.
A professional RC vehicle racer travels the world racing customized radio-controlled vehicles for prize money. Speaking of childhood dreams, an amusement park ride tester checks rides for faults and potential dangers.
Circus laborers are responsible for the care of big animals, loading and unloading them and their equipment.
A deer urine farmer collects and sells undiluted whitetail urine, which is used for hunting. A typical deer farmer can make between $93,000 and $33,000 off of one deer each year.
Roadkill collectors search roads for carcasses and dispose of them at landfills and compost heaps, depending on state laws. Frog pickers work for biological suppliers who preserve animals for students.
Another job that’s not for the easily queasy is a crime scene cleaner. Their responsibilities include cleaning up after various incidents.
Smaller mattress companies employ people to jump on their mattresses to compress the cotton material.
A comic book inspector looks over classic comics for damage, and upon completion, the book is sealed in a tamper-proof plastic case.
Museum technicians mold and restore skeleton parts of fossils and reassemble fragmented artifacts.
A snowmaker creates snow for ski resorts using large equipment that turns water and pressurized air into snow.
A kelp cutter lowers a mower into water from a harvesting boat and monitors the mower as kelp builds up.
Many medical schools hire fake patients to help future physicians hone their bedside manner.
At a casino, the Kino Rider takes bets, operates machines, and calls the numbers.
Box toe buffers ensure our shoes are perfectly polished.
Band salvagers recycle cotton bales, straightening and cutting the bands for reuse.
Finally, in 2010, six people in Moscow locked themselves in a mock spacecraft for 490 days to see if it was possible to travel in deep space without going insane.
Thank you for watching Mental Floss on YouTube, which is made with the help of many wonderful people. Every week, we endeavor to answer one of your mind-blowing questions. This week’s question comes from Danny Harwood, who asks who invented the straw. Marvin Stone is the inventor of the modern drinking straw, patented in 1888. Before his invention, people used natural rye grass straws, which were not very pleasant.
If you have a mind-blowing question you would like answered, leave it below in the comments, and we’ll try to answer it. Thanks again for watching!
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Let me know if you need any further modifications!
Planetarium – A building or room in which images of stars, planets, and constellations are projected onto a dome for educational and entertainment purposes. – The students visited the planetarium to learn about the different constellations visible in the night sky.
Technician – A person skilled in the technical aspects of a field, often responsible for maintaining and repairing equipment. – The laboratory technician ensured that all the microscopes were functioning properly before the biology class began.
Ice – The solid form of water, which occurs when water freezes at or below 0°C (32°F). – Scientists study ice cores from glaciers to learn about Earth’s climate history.
Cream – The thick, fatty part of milk that rises to the top and can be used in cooking or as a dairy product. – In biology class, we learned how cream separates from milk due to its lower density.
Taste – The sensation produced when a substance in the mouth reacts chemically with taste receptor cells located on taste buds. – Our taste buds can detect five basic tastes: sweet, sour, salty, bitter, and umami.
Food – Any nutritious substance that organisms consume to maintain life and growth. – Plants produce their own food through the process of photosynthesis, using sunlight, carbon dioxide, and water.
Poison – A substance that can cause harm or death to organisms when introduced or absorbed. – The biology teacher explained how certain frogs produce poison as a defense mechanism against predators.
Farmer – A person who owns or manages a farm, cultivating land and raising crops or animals for food and other products. – Farmers play a crucial role in the ecosystem by growing crops that provide food for humans and animals.
Frog – An amphibian with smooth skin, long hind legs for jumping, and typically found near water. – During the biology field trip, we observed a frog in its natural habitat near the pond.
Biological – Relating to biology or living organisms. – The biological study of ecosystems helps us understand the interactions between different species and their environments.
