Scientists used a confocal laser microscope to map the topography of an IHOP flapjack. When they compared the relative change in elevation to the US Geological Survey’s data for the state of Kansas, they were able to confirm that Kansas really is “flatter than a pancake.”  (, , )

Michael Jackson was a huge Weird Al Yankovic fan. Not only did he let Al do parodies of ‘Bad’ and ‘Beat it’, he also let him use the actual ‘Bad’ subway set for the ‘Fat’ music video and helped convince other artists to let him use their songs, too.  (, , )