Jimmy Fallon has made his mark on late-night TV by making all us viewers at home feel like we're in on the action. It's like he and his guests are bromancing and sitting in our living rooms with us, and we're all laughing our butts off together. And some of the most hilarious moments on Fallon's show take place during the crazy games he makes his guest play — but those games are so outrageous, we shouldn't dare play the same ones at home, right? Wrong!

Fallon's game-time hijinks on The Tonight Show would make for one amazing party, especially if you get a few cocktails involved. We've gathered up some of Fallon's best games that you should totally try for yourself.

More: Jimmy Fallon's 2017 Golden Globes Opening Number Was So Meme-able

1. Would You Rather

This game has always been the worst because it normally takes a dark, dirty or gross turn, and still we ask, why aren't we playing it more often? Asking acquaintances, "Would you rather have a clone of yourself or have a pet dog who can talk?" is guaranteed to break the ice at any party.

2. The Whisper Challenge

This is the kind of game where you spend the majority of the time trying not to pee your pants laughing because it's just so ridiculous. As Blake Shelton and Fallon demonstrate, the Whisper Challenge involves wearing noise-canceling headphones and attempting to guess random words and phrases. May the best (wo)man win.

3. Best Friends Challenge

Now, this one is kind of adorable and perfect for a more intimate gathering, aka a girls' night in. How well do you know your bestie? You can each take turns drawing questions from the Best Friends Box to see if you can guess each other's answers. At the very least, you'll get to know each other better — by figuring out her most hated food and her first celebrity crush.

4. Slapjack

The premise here is simple. You square off against a friend (or foe?) in a game of blackjack. The person who loses each hand gets, well, a hand — to the face. And, really, what's more fun than slapping someone with giant prosthetic digits? OK, so you may have to substitute the monster hand with a foam finger from a sporting event or with a pillow.

5. Wheel of Impressions

Disclaimer: There's no way in hell you or any of your loved ones could rival Kevin Spacey when it comes to Wheel of Impressions. He's just too good. Did you catch his Johnny Carson? Still, it will be pretty hilarious to watch your friends attempt to impersonate people like Samuel L. Jackson talking about, oh, you know, something like bubble wrap. To adapt for your home, simply write a bunch of celeb names down and toss them into one basket, and write down a bunch of random topics and toss them in another. Voilà!

6. Random Phrase Carols

To be honest, this is kind of what it sounds like when I get to the second verse of most Christmas carols (do you know the second verse to "Away in a Manger"?). You'll need someone who isn't playing to be the penner of the random lyrics and you'll need an instrumental Christmas music CD.

More: Jimmy Fallon's #WhyImSingle Went From Funny to Feminist Real Quick

7. Box of Lies

Sorry, ladies... this game doesn't come with Channing Tatum, as super as that would be. The gist is this: You stick about nine random things in shoe boxes. You create a makeshift partition between you and your non-Channing-Tatum-like competitor, and then you take turns trying to determine whether you each are telling the truth about what's in your chosen box or whether you're flat-out lying.

Next Up: Musical Beers

Originally published December 2014. Updated February 2017.

{pageBreak}

8. Musical Beers

Well, we all know how musical chairs works, right? This is essentially the same, only there are no chairs... just beers. A round table would probably work best, particularly since drunk-ish people tend not to do well with sharp edges. Don't say we didn't warn you.

9. Egg Russian Roulette

First off, you're going to need to recruit a friend who's good at bad accents to be your Higgins. Said friend will announce, in what sounds much like the voice of a leprechaun, that the game involves a dozen eggs — eight of which have been hard-boiled and four of which are raw. Dig some embarrassing headwear out of the closet, then take turns smashing eggs against your foreheads. The first person to get yolk on their face twice loses.

10. Antler Ring Toss

Oh, hey, you're having a holiday party? How much more festive could you possibly get than a rousing game of Antler Ring Toss? Since it's altogether likely that you don't have a camouflage helmet with massive antlers affixed to the top, you'll probably simply need to hold some sticks on top of your head and have a friend throw Frisbee discs at them. Of course, if you're an avid hunter and happen to have a few racks lying around, by all means antler it up.

11. Water War

To play Water War, you only need four things: a deck of cards, 10 glasses of water, a Super Soaker water gun... and a sense of humor. In honor of Fallon and his special guest, Lindsay Lohan, you could make this game a bit naughty by playing in white T-shirts. You know, if you're into that sort of thing.

12. Giant Beer Pong

Why play regular beer pong when you can play Giant Beer Pong?! You should probably start stocking up on volleyballs now because, as Nina Dobrev points out, that's what you'll need for your giant ping pong balls. You're also going to want to fill a bunch of round trash cans with water to toss your balls into. If you want to get really authentic, break out the red paint and give them a Solo cup makeover.

13. Word Sneak

This game is already hilarious, but it would be a total riot if you played it after a round of Giant Beer Pong. Eh? Simply have someone who isn't playing jot a bunch of random words down on slips of paper. Divide into two stacks, disperse and laugh your ass off as your bestie tries to fit words like "titmouse" and "Stonehenge" into casual conversation.

14. Beer Hockey

Granted, this game may require a bit of legwork on your part. But if you've ever put together IKEA furniture, you should have no problem hacking a table to turn it into the love child of an air hockey table and a beer pong table. Just ask Josh Hutcherson — he knows it to be so.

Next Up: Three-Word Stories

{pageBreak}

15. Three-Word Stories

If Benedict Cumberbatch is any indication, a byproduct of playing Three-Word Stories is coming off as completely adorable. Much like Word Sneak, you're going to need two stacks of random words. Then, you'll take turns starting stories with three words and trying to lead your competitor to say, in the next three words, the secret word.

More: Jimmy Fallon's 7 best duets on The Tonight Show

16. 5-Second Summaries

Calling all movie buffs! You're going to need a healthy knowledge of movie trivia to play 5-Second Summaries. And, well, it's pretty much exactly like it sounds — you've got five seconds to describe the movie listed on the card you are given in a way that will get your teammate to guess it.

17. Face-Stuffing Contest

While this may not sound much unlike a regular holiday dinner, there's a special twist to this face-stuffing. You are only allowed to eat the food in front of you with the, um, utensils provided. Spaghetti with whisks? Sure thing. Fully loaded nachos with tongs? You betcha. After watching Glenn Close go all in for a round of this, we've never loved her more.

18. Random Object Football Toss

We're not generally ones for wasting food, so we recommend if you play Random Object Football Toss with food that you grab those questionable leftovers that have been in your fridge for two weeks. Other than that, any objects are fair game to toss.

19. Karate Piñata

Unless you've got some high-tech, spinning contraption hooked up, your piñatas probably won't be spinning around you. Although we suppose you could tie them to an outdoor fan. But you can still don a bandanna and play Karate Piñata — you'll just have to play several rounds to see who inflicts the most damage on the plethora of piñatas you'll undoubtedly go through.

20. Face Balls

Go forth and get yourself a whole bunch of clear plastic beach balls, because you're going to be tossing them at your friends' faces soon enough. In addition to an excellent throwing arm, you're going to need a friend with a steady hand to act as your videographer. How else are you going to capture the way your buddy's cheeks flap when the ball bounces off their face?

21. Lip Sync Battle

This is about as easy as it gets — you just need a killer playlist and an absurd accuracy with obscure song lyrics. And even though Emma Stone is nearly certain to go down in history as the eternal champion of Lip Sync Battle, it'll be a blast trying to beat her rendition of "All I Do Is Win."

Before you go, check out our slideshow below.

I lost my mother to cancer when I was 19, and like most people who suffer that kind of loss, I wanted answers, some kind of explanation for what happened to my mom, and as it happened, many of the other women in her family too. My mother, who was Jewish, died from pancreatic cancer when she was only in her 40s, and many of her maternal aunts, also Jewish, suffered from breast cancer.

I felt there had to be a connection between all of these cancer cases, but over the years, all of my doctors always said no — breast and pancreatic cancer aren't related, and because I don’t have any maternal aunts with breast cancer, I'm not considered "high risk."

More: 3 Women on How Breast Cancer Affected Their Lives

Then one night, while browsing Johns Hopkins Pancreatic Cancer Research Center’s website (you know, a typical Saturday night), I was surprised to learn there can be a hereditary connection between some forms of breast and pancreatic cancers in Ashkenazi Jews. Unfortunately, the testing for that mutation wasn’t covered by insurance at that time, so it would cost thousands of dollars. But several years and a Supreme Court decision later, my health insurance was finally able to cover the testing.

I met with a geneticist this past summer and we went over my entire family tree — my mother, her brother, her aunts, my father, my grandparents — as many family health histories as my dad could remember, plus my younger sister and my two kids. I kept staring at the many names on the page, trying to keep all of these connected histories straight. The nurse took some blood. I went home and then did my best over the next several weeks to avoid thinking about cancer.

When I came back to get the results, my anxiety was at a fever pitch. The doctor met me in the waiting room, and as we rode the elevator up to her office, she turned to me and asked, “Did you cut your hair?”

What does that mean, I wondered. Is she trying to cheer me up before she gives me bad news? Or is she so relaxed, thanks to my good test results, that she just wants to chat about my haircut.

More: Why Losing Your Hair to Chemo May Be a Thing of the Past

“Mmhmm,” I nodded and began furiously chewing my lip off. After what may have been the longest two-minute elevator ride of my life, we finally arrived at her office.

I didn’t test positive for any of the breast or pancreatic cancer mutations. Not one. But before I could react, she told me I did test positive for a mutation associated with a moderate risk of colon cancer. Colon cancer?

“But no one in my family has ever had colon cancer,” I stammered. It turns out the risk for that mutation is only about the same as having a relative with colon cancer. And risk isn’t the same as a diagnosis. You can have a mutation without ever getting cancer.

All these years, I’ve been waiting for science to give me answers, but now I only had more questions. Did the results mean I didn’t inherit the mutations my mother and aunts had or did it mean they never had those mutations to begin with? Because most cancers are “sporadic” rather than “inherited,” there’s a chance my mother and even her aunts’ cancers weren’t inherited conditions.

This year, I had my first of (hopefully?) many colonoscopies, as I’ll need to get them every three to five years from now on. My sister, and eventually, my kids should get tested too. I was hoping genetic testing would give me a sense of certainty, but I often feel anxious and overwhelmed. I’m seeing a gastroenterologist for the colon cancer risk, a breast cancer oncologist for the still unexplained breast cancer in my family, and I’m supposed to get on the registry for pancreatic cancer at Johns Hopkins. These appointments feel like a constant reminder that illness and death lurk around every corner. Was the testing worth it? I don’t know.

More: Promising New Vaccine Could Use Your Own Cells to Fight Breast Cancer

I met with the breast cancer oncologist a few weeks after my genetic testing results. For years, doctors have more or less just shrugged their shoulders at my family history, but this doctor, perhaps because she’s a breast cancer specialist, took one look at my chart and said, “This definitely looks like a hereditary cancer.” I’d been waiting for something definitive and, well, here she was. We made a plan: I asked my dad to get further testing to see if we could trace the colon cancer mutation, scheduled my mammogram and agreed to come back in six months and reevaluate.

It turns out my dad does have this same mutation, which means this testing isn’t just about me or my mom. It’s my dad, my sister, my kids — a never-ending set of calculations. Genetic testing doesn’t give you answers; it just gives you information. Figuring out what comes next is no easy feat.

When you think of Venus Williams, you probably think of her as being one half of one of the world’s most dynamic duos, along with her equally famous sister, Serena. While the two routinely make headlines for being tennis superstars, you gotta wonder what goes on off the courts to get in such incredible shape.

We got the chance to ask Venus about her day-to-day eating and exercise routine. She might be unbelievably fit, but she’s got a vice, just like the rest of us. Read on to find out, in her own words, about Venus’s favorite junk food, workout music, and healthy snack.

I start an average day by: Drinking a green smoothie of kale, spinach, pineapple and vegan protein powder.

For lunch I had: Green salad with goddess dressing and roasted corn.

Today I snacked on: Dried fruits and nuts.

My go-to healthy drink is: Hot water with lemon and honey.

The one thing I would never eat is: Escargot.

More: 7 Low-Effort Ways to Stay Fit This Winter

My favorite workout is: Plyometrics and any fast-paced drills, because it’s exciting.

My guilty pleasure food is: Donuts.

The one thing that always gets me motivated to work out is: Knowing I’m going to get results.

The next big health and fitness trend will be: Triathlons.

My favorite healthy restaurant is: Christopher’s Kitchen in Palm Beach Gardens, FL.

My favorite healthy snack is: Dried cherries and organic fruit straps.

On Instagram I’m obsessed with following: Serena Williams!

The three ingredients you’ll always find in my kitchen are: Himalayan pink salt, organic butter, and kale.

My biggest health tip for travelers is to: Somehow squeeze in a workout in the morning, even if it’s a small one. That way, you have the rest of the day to enjoy and sightsee.

My signature healthy dish is: Warm roasted kale salad with sun-dried tomatoes and fresh peppercorn.

The health app I couldn’t live without is: Run Keeper.

The top three songs on my workout playlist right now are: “One More Time” by Daft Punk, “Dangerous” by David Guetta, and “Panda” by Desiigner.

My favorite activewear brands are: I’m a little biased, but I love EleVen‘s just-launched Epitome collection.

The best part of my job is: Living my dream on a daily basis.

More: This is The Best Time of Day to Eat to Lose Weight

Originally posted on StyleCaster.com

You're a fashionista, and you know your baby is going to be one too — which is perfect, because there are a million fashion-inspired names for boys and girls out there that just can't be ignored.

Haute names of fashion designers and labels

The names of the talented fashion designers are as cutting-edge and cool as the clothes they create. If you are looking for a haute baby name for your boy or girl, why not start with the designer?

More: Game of Thrones Baby Names True Fans Need to Add to Their List

If both the first name and the last name would make a cool name, such as Calvin Klein, we have separated the name so it stands on its own. We have not broken up the list into girl names and boy names because fashion isn't about conforming to the norm, but making your own rules.

Check out our picks.

• Klein
• Calvin
• Alexander
• Sui
• Chanel
• Coco
• Karan
• Adele
• Anju
• Donatella
• Carolina
• Versace
• Prada
• Vivienne
• Vera
• Tory
• Christian
• Domenico
• Gianni
• Cristobal
• Giorgio
• Hugo
• Helmut
• Michael
• Zac
• Valentino
• Tommy
• Ralph
• Oscar
• Manolo
• Julien
• Issey
• Jean
• Stefano
• Stella
• Beckham
• Tracy
• Reese
• Betsey
• Cynthia
• Donna

Fabulous name, dahhhling!

No one will wonder, "Who is she wearing?" when they hear your child's couture name. Check out these unique and fashionable names from some of the hottest labels around.

• Celine
• Chloe
• Christian
• Dior
• Dolce
• Fendi
• Gabbana
• Facchinetti
• Gucci
• Lanvin
• Versace
• Prada
• Lacroix
• Balenciaga
• Jacobs
• Hermes
• Lauren
• Ferragamo
• Missoni
• Philip
• Cavalli
• Valentino
• Givenchy
• Diesel
• Louis
• Galliano
• Vuitton
• Viktor
• Rolf

Model-perfect baby name

Have you noticed that the fashion models have names as fabulous as the labels they're wearing? If you are looking for an exotic name that helps your child stand out in a crowd, you will love the following choices.

• Gisele
• Gigi
• Bella
• Karlie
• Cara
• Kendall
• Ashley
• Adriana
• Alessandra
• Miranda
• Marisa
• Karolina
• Heidi
• Selita
• Izabel
• Stephanie
• Doutzen
• Claudia
• Cintia
• Naomi
• Bar
• Candice
• Tyra
• Elsa
• Helena
• Brooklyn
• Rosie
• Lily
• Miranda
• Petra
• Mark
• Marcus
• Taylor
• Mathis

Tips for finding a posh baby name

When searching for a fashionable baby name, don't be afraid to think outside the box. Unisex names are hip and always in style, as are exotic names. Look through our list of Italian names for a girl or a boy moniker that is as hip as it is worldly. Consider names with X or Z, such as Jax or Zane, and even look to the past to find an old-fashioned name that suddenly feels fresh and modern. Another fashionable find is using a last name as a first name, such as Smith, Nixon or Dyer.

More: Bright and Shiny Baby Names That Mean "Light"

Before you go, check out our slideshow below.

Originally published January 2012. Updated February 2017.

Dear Disappointed Coachella Ticket-Holders:

Yes. We know you are very bummed out that Queen Bey has been forced to withdraw from the Coachella lineup due to that teensy-weensy irritating little detail of her being pregnant with twins. Yes, we know she was the headliner. Yes, we know you rearranged your work schedule two years in advance and are missing your best friend's wedding because you were hoping to glimpse Beyoncé in all of her goddess-y glory.

We'll just spit it out: You need to get over yourself, m'kay? Check yourself before you wreck yourself. Chill. Have a little compassion for an uncomfortable pregnant woman.

More: Best news of 2017? Bey and Jay are expecting twins

No one knows exactly how far along Bey is in her pregnancy. But if you've seen any of her baby announcement photos, you can see for yourself our dear Beyoncé is not just mildly, casually, passingly pregnant. THAT BELLY THO. We're guessing she's well into her second trimester, and since Coachella ain't happening until late April, well...come on. What did you expect? Twins happen. Just ask George and Amal Clooney.

Weeping and the tearing of garments were heard around the globe when Coachella organizers released this statement:

"Following the advice of her doctors to keep a less rigorous schedule in the coming months, Beyoncé has made the decision to forgo performing at the 2017 Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival. However, Goldenvoice and Parkwood are pleased to confirm that she will be a headliner at the 2018 festival. Thank you for understanding."

As for all the speculation that the announcement might indicate some health problem or trouble with the pregnancy, hush already. Let's not go there. The fact of the matter is, if you had a 40-pound bag of dog food strapped around your waist with duct tape (oh, just go with it) you might not feel like shimmying and shaking and belting high A flats in stilettos in front of tens of thousands of screaming fans either.

More: Are there secret clues in Beyoncé's baby announcement album? You betcha

You might just really, really want to put your feet up and Snapchat on your secret account with your firstborn and maybe snuggle with your bae and catch up on Scandal and The Walking Dead before you pop.

"But! But! Her pregnancy didn't stop her from performing at the 2017 Grammy Awards," we hear you muttering under your breath out there.

For the love of God and all things Bey-holy: This is a woman who's got her priorities straight. She gave you what she could. And now? Bey out.

And what about the OB-GYN who talked to USA Today and created mass hyperventilation for Beyoncé fans? The one who said, "In an uncomplicated pregnancy, exercise, dancing, movement is all 100% safe and acceptable and, in fact, encouraged. There is no medical reason for not being active unless there are concerns about the pregnancy."

Honestly? WTF, Dr. Talebian? We bristle when anyone tells a mother-to-be what she should or should not be doing. Back the hell off, lady, and let the Queen Bey gestate as she likes.

And yes, back to you ticket-holders. We know, your tix will not be refunded, which admittedly is a drag. But you did look at that lineup, right? There's still time to become a Radiohead fan. Or, you know, a Kendrick Lamar devotee. Get with the times.

And anyway, there are some nice national parks out that way, we hear. You'll get through this somehow. We promise.

Opposition to Donald Trump is starting to pile up, even from people who previously supported him.

Caitlyn Jenner made waves with her decision to back Trump in the election, mostly due to the Republican Party's tendency to oppose equal rights for the LGBTQ community. Now, Jenner is sending a clear message to Trump, whose administration stripped away federal guidelines for bathroom use for trans kids in schools.

More: I Support Caitlyn Jenner's Right to be Trans and a Republican

"I have a message for the trans kids of America: You're winning. I know it doesn't feel like it today or every day, but you're winning," Jenner said in a video she posted to Twitter Thursday. "Very soon, we will win full freedom nationwide and it will be with bipartisan support."

Jenner continued, "I have a message for the bullies: You're sick. And because you're weak, you pick on kids or pick on women or anyone else who's vulnerable. Apparently, even becoming attorney general isn't enough to cure some people of their insecurities."

More: No, the Kardashian Curse Is Not a Real Thing, and It Needs to Die

With a framed American flag in the background, Jenner promised that the case for trans students to use whichever bathroom they are comfortable in will go to the Supreme Court and finished with a message directed at the president: "From one Republican to another, this is a disaster and you can still fix it. You made a promise to protect the LGBTQ community. Call me."

The administration's move targeting trans kids attracted attention from other celebs too, including Beyoncé, who posted to social media for the first time since her pregnancy announcement.

"#LGBTQ students need to know we support them. Share your support to #protecttransyouth at glsen.org/100days & put #KindnessInAction GLSEN​," Bey wrote on Facebook, including a link to GLSEN's Kindness in Action initiative, which is combating bullying in schools that targets LGBTQ kids.

More: Apparently, Caitlyn Jenner's Relationship with her Stepdaughters Isn't Good

Before you go, check out our slideshow below.

If you can cut through all the noise about beautifying smoothies, you’ll realize one thing continues to crop up: the importance of probiotics. Doctors and holistic experts agree probiotics are an awesome add-on to your routine.

Though many medical professionals would argue probiotics aren’t an absolute essential (your body does a pretty good job of regulating bacteria on its own), most tout their digestion-aiding properties and find their good bacteria-boosting benefits a plus. The Mayo Clinic’s Dr. Katherine Zeratsky explains that probiotics can help people suffering from digestive problems, guard against vaginal infections and help fend off infections and illnesses. What’s not to love?

More: Why kefir is one superfood you may want to make instead of buy

Though the idea of ingesting hundreds and hundreds of tiny live bacteria is a little hard to stomach, their gut-soothing and immunity-boosting powers are hard to beat. With so many probiotic products on the market, how’s a girl to choose? We’ll break it down for you…

Eat your probiotics!

A health trend in its own right, Greek yogurt is one of the most popular ways to get your probiotic fix. Though probiotics are present in regular yogurt and in whole-milk alternatives, Greek yogurt often boasts high protein content that also sways the health-conscious. If you’re stuck in the dairy section trying to make sense of all the tiny cartons, look for a National Yogurt Association “Live & Active Cultures” logo in the item’s nutrition facts. To earn the seal, Everyday Health says your yogurt needs “at least 100 million cultures per gram.” They report that if you’re looking to balance probiotic benefits and health, you should opt for a nonfat, plain, high-calcium product that’s low in sugar.

Fermented foods, like kimchi and sauerkraut, have gained a bit of a cult following. As “superfoods,” their health benefits have earned them a spot on the menu at just about every trendy or healthy restaurant and on shelves at health food stores. Kimchi, a Korean pickled cabbage dish, contains many gut-healthy probiotic strains. The fermentation process also makes it nutrient-dense. Cabbage is also especially high in important vitamins and fiber, so if you can stomach the kind of funky taste, it’s well worth your while.

More: 4 weekend detox diets that won't torture you

Or drink them

Drinkable yogurt and similar products (like kefir) are also low in sugar and contain many live and active cultures to help support gut health and up your natural defenses against infection. Many kefir products actually contain more live cultures and more varied strains of good bacteria than yogurt. According to Dr. Josh Axe, a prominent wellness blogger, kefir is more nutritious than yogurt. He explains that kefir’s probiotic content is off the charts, including a greater range of strains and a higher probiotic count than almost any other probiotic-rich food. The best way to use kefir for health benefits? Axe says make your own.

Kombucha, another health craze, is also known for its probiotic content. The popular drink often contains apple cider vinegar, ginger and other natural immunity-boosters. Made from a live bacterial colony, this tea or fizzy drink is about as probiotic as they come.

Go the pill route

Health blogger Dr. David Williams argues that “the best way to support digestive health is first to add more probiotic foods” to your grocery list. So what to do if you need your fix but aren’t into the yogurts and drinks? Try a supplement, available at your local health or vitamin store. Don’t let the shelves of options overwhelm you. Williams suggests looking first for the supplement that contains the highest probiotic content and the most strains. Though it’s hard to pinpoint a specific “best” strain, a wide variety is often the most effective. Williams' top three to look for? L.acidophilus, B. longum, and B. bifidum.

You need live cultures, and since you’ll be purchasing a “still living organism,” you’ll want to store your supplements in cool, dry places where they won’t get too much light.

More: Why I drink kombucha, even though it took me time to love it

Ultimately, a mix of probiotic delivery systems is often the most effective. Having supplements on hand and a fridge full of probiotic foods is a surefire way to fit them in no matter what you feel each day. If you’re not sure you want a daily probiotic, try adding one into your routine if you feel a cold coming on or are taking antibiotics, times when you’re sure to need a little extra boost. Or if you’re feeling adventurous, test them all and find your favorites. Of course, there’s no best method, only what makes the most sense for you.

By Emma Miller

Originally published on HelloFlo.

March is Women's History Month — and with all the hate and confusion going on in our society today, it's more important than ever to educate our children about the strong women throughout history who have helped make the world a better place.

Giving your kids a comprehensive lesson on all the fabulous, groundbreaking females who have ever existed would take years, but we've come up with a brief mini-history study so you have a place to start.

More: How to Raise a Highly Sensitive Child

1. Harriet Tubman

Tubman — who was born Araminta Harriet Ross in 1820 and died in 1913 — boasts a long list of world-changing headlines on her resume. She was born into slavery, but escaped in 1849 and went on to become a leading abolitionist. Tubman rescued countless others from slavery by operating the Underground Railroad, the secret passageway from the South into Pennsylvania in the North (which was a free state at the time). In addition to helping slaves, Tubman also dedicated her life to helping the poor and elderly, and established her own Home for the Aged, according to biography.com.

In 2016, the U.S. Treasury Department announced that Harriet Tubman will replace Andrew Jackson on the center of a new $20 bill.

Famous words: "I freed thousands of slaves, and could have freed thousands more, if they had known they were slaves."

2. Elizabeth Cady Stanton

Stanton was born in 1815 in New York and died in 1902. She became one of the most prominent 19th century suffragists and civil rights activists and helped organize the first ever women's rights convention in 1848, according to history.com. She also worked alongside fellow famous suffragist Susan B. Anthony to form the National Women's Loyal League in 1863, and seven years later, they established the National Woman Suffrage Association.

Because of her liberal views about divorce and her dislike of organized religion, the American mainstream fought hard to silence Stanton — but she is a big reason why the 19th Amendment eventually passed in 1919, giving all citizens the right to vote.

Famous words: "I would have girls regard themselves not as adjectives, but as nouns."

3. Madam C.J. Walker

Madam C.J. Walker was born Sarah Breedlove in Louisiana in 1867 on a cotton plantation and died in 1919, according to biography.com. Walker is the O.G. of entrepreneurs — she invented a line of African-American hair care products in 1905, worked her butt off, and became the first self-made female millionaire in America.

Walker was also known for helping others, and donated the largest amount of money by an African-American toward the construction of an Indianapolis YMCA in 1913.

Her business is still up and running to this day.

Famous words: "There is no royal flower-strewn path to success... And if there is, I have not found it for if I have accomplished anything in life it is because I have been willing to work hard."

4. Maria Mitchell

Maria Mitchell was born in Massachusetts in 1818 and died in 1889. She was a librarian, naturalist and educator, but shot to fame as an astronomer after she discovered a comet — a discovery which made her America's first professional female astronomer, according to the Maria Mitchell Association.

But fame wasn't always rainbows and butterflies for Mitchell. Women in science and unmarried women suffered from extreme discrimination back in her day — and Mitchell was both.

Mitchell (who was white) was also an intersectional feminist, which was rare in her time. She fought for equality for women of all races, and even stopped wearing clothes made of cotton to protest slavery, according to the National Women's History Museum.

Famous words: "We especially need imagination in science. It is not all mathematics, nor all logic, but it is somewhat beauty and poetry."

5. Rosa Parks

Parks was born in Alabama in 1913 and died in 2005. She is most famous for refusing to give up her seat on the bus in Montgomery, Alabama during the height of racial segregation in our nation in 1955. Her refusal led to her arrest, bus boycotts, protests and, eventually, legal actions that declared segregation laws to be unconstitutional.

Parks' brave actions and the resulting bus boycotts in the name of Civil Rights for all, led to the rise of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. — it was in the days after Parks' refusal to give up her seat that he was elected as the head of the newly-formed Montgomery Improvement Association.

But refusing to move to the back of the bus was only the beginning of Parks' civil rights career. She kept fighting until her death.

Famous words: "Racism is still with us. But it is up to us to prepare our children for what they have to meet, and, hopefully, we shall overcome."

6 - 8. Mary Jackson, Katherine Johnson and Dorothy Vaughan

When you think of the Space Race and astronauts in the 1960s, you think of men like Alan Shepard, Gus Grissom and John Glenn. But behind the scenes, Jackson, Johnson and Vaughan were integral in putting American astronauts on the moon. They worked at NASA, and were known as "human computers" who did the calculations for orbital trajectories — which is a hard job for anyone to get, but these three were women and black, making their rise to success in a white man's world in the '60s trailblazing.

Jackson, Johnson and Vaughan are just now finally getting the recognition they deserve because of the 2016 film Hidden Figures starring Taraji P. Henson, Octavia Spencer and Janelle Monáe.

Famous words: "Know how to learn. Then, want to learn." - Katherine Johnson

9. Marie Curie

Curie was born Marie Sklodowska in Poland in 1867 and lived until 1934, alongside her husband, Pierre Curie. She is another female scientist who worked hard to break through gender lines.

In 1903, Curie became the first woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize for her work in physics. She also became the only woman to win the award in more than one category. She is, without a doubt, the most famous woman scientist in history, especially for her work with radioactive materials.

Famous words: "Nothing in life is to be feared, it is only to be understood. Now is the time to understand more, so that we may fear less."

11. Dolores Huerta

Over the past 50 years, Huerta has fought hard to improve social and economic conditions for farm workers. She created the Agricultural Workers Association (AWA) in 1960 and also co-founded what would become the United Farm Workers (UFW).

Huerta stepped down from the UFW in 1999, but she continues to lecture and speak out on social issues involving immigration, income inequality and the rights of women and Latinos. She is also constantly encouraging people to exercise their right to vote.

Famous words: "Every moment is an organizing opportunity, every person a potential activist, every minute a chance to change the world."

12. Dr. Sally Ride

Born in 1951 in Los Angeles, Dr. Ride was another woman who refused to be held down by gender barriers and shattered glass ceilings — almost quite literally.

Dr. Ride studied hard at Stanford University before beating out 1,000 other applicants for a spot in NASA's astronaut program, and in 1983, she became the first American woman in space aboard the space shuttle Challenger. While aboard, Ride worked as a mission specialist and helped deploy satellites, according to biography.com.

After her time with NASA, Ride became the director of the California Space Institute at the University of California, San Diego, as well as a professor of physics at the school in 1989. In 2001, she started Sally Ride Science, which created educational programs to help inspire girls and young women to pursue interests in science and math.

Dr. Ride died in 2012.

More: Ashton Kutcher Is Fighting Child Slavery and Sex Trafficking

Before you go, check out our slideshow below.

Originally published March 2013. Updated February 2017.

Praise Oprah Winfrey for reminding us of something really important that society doesn't seem to understand. Women are under no obligation to have children, and it's OK if they decide not to.

More: Michelle Obama Tells Oprah the Sound Advice She Gave to Melania Trump

Winfrey herself just opened up about the reason she never had any kids of her own, and it's remarkably simple: She didn't want to.

"I wouldn’t have been a good mom for babies," she said in the interview, which will appear in Good Housekeeping U.K.'s April issue. "I don’t have the patience. I have the patience for puppies, but that’s a quick stage!"

Instead, Winfrey has found satisfaction in her work, which — and this is a crazy concept for some people, I know, but bear with her here — she decided to prioritize above reproducing simply because she's biologically able to.

"When people were pressuring me to get married and have children, I knew I was not going to be a person that ever regretted not having them, because I feel like I am a mother to the world’s children," she said. "Love knows no boundaries. It doesn’t matter if a child came from your womb or if you found that person at age 2, 10 or 20. If the love is real, the caring is pure and it comes from a good space, it works."

More: Mackenzie Phillips' Cocaine Use at 11 Opens Up a Much Bigger Conversation

This isn't the first time Winfrey has been open about her conscious decision not to have kids. In a 2013 interview, she acknowledged that her job was more important to her, which is obviously completely her call and an OK choice to make.

"If I had kids, my kids would hate me," she said at the time. "They would have ended up on the equivalent of the Oprah show talking about me; because something [in my life] would have had to suffer and it would’ve probably been them."

More: Our Eyes Are Rolling So Hard at Jennifer Weiner's Oprah Rant

I’ve tried to give Kellyanne Conway the benefit of the doubt. She’s well-educated and professionally accomplished, so maybe she’s just floundering and out of her element as a political leader. But her latest headline moment during Thursday’s Conservative Political Action Conference was the last straw for me.

On the early end of an otherwise fluffy interview, Conway told Mercedes Schlapp she doesn’t consider herself a feminist “in the classic sense because it seems to be anti-male and…very pro-abortion.” (At 4:50 in the video below.)

The fact that the conservative attendees applauded the comment is a statement on how even bright, successful women can mislead the conversation on equality.

The fact that Conway then tried to define her own version of feminism is a testament to how out of touch she is with today’s feminist movement. Sadly, I don’t think she’s alone.

More: Matt Lauer Was Basically All of Us While Talking to Kellyanne Conway

Conway’s short-sighted remark describes the feminism we knew in the 1960s and '70s. That’s the kind of feminism Conway is afraid to align with. A movement notorious for its vigilante tone and barely checked rage.

A movement marked by rebellion.

A movement characterized by backlash against suffocating roles women felt they’d been raised with and to which their mother’s still subscribed.

That feminism was also depressingly white and largely ignored the unique challenges faced by minority women. But just a quick look at the recent Women’s March is indicative of how much things have changed. It was a kaleidoscope of ages, colors and genders. It was peaceful, if a touch dirty... (Ladies, pick up your trash!) And much of the surrounding conversation highlighted the unequal burdens still shouldered by marginalized women. That’s today’s feminism. It fights to uplift women around the world, works to end female genital mutilation and child marriages and spotlights partner abuse and human trafficking. Any woman should be proud to support it.

Dangerous games

To anyone who remembers the history of the women’s movement, Conway’s remarks sound dangerously familiar.

Quick review: The organized work of first-wave feminism ended after women earned official rights like voting, public service and property ownership. Second-wave feminism petered out in the 1980s, poisoned by infighting over sexuality and pornography. Women couldn’t come to an agreement or agree to disagree, and efforts on all fronts ground to a halt. The feminist movement splintered.

More: Kellyanne Conway Punched a Guy in the Face – Not Once, Not Twice, But Three Times

Third-wave feminism, what we have now, has been defined by a woman’s right to make her own choices about her family, job, personal presence and beliefs. The whole idea is to support women in becoming whoever they choose, so no self-respecting feminist should be telling another woman what she has to be.

But Conway’s comments accuse feminists of doing just that — holding out a membership clause demanding everyone be on the same side of all issues. The sad truth is, she’s not entirely wrong. There is a feminist faction who’d like everyone to subscribe to the same beliefs. Heck, they managed to get anti-abortion groups barred from participating in the Women’s March. Both are wrong for attempting to split the gender (and male supporters, we see you!) over a single issue.

We’re allowed to be members of a political party, church, civic group, family, community or partnership while strongly disagreeing over one or more positions... unless it’s about sports, in which case declaring someone dead to you is totally fine.

But the real question — why can't this be the same for feminist issues?

Wasting her chance

The whole thing is sad because recent performance aside, Conway could be an inspiration to girls. She came from a home full of strong women, being raised by her mother, grandmother and two aunts after her parents divorced. She started working when she was 16. She excelled in school, earned her law degree with honors and worked in the male-dominated field of political polling.

She co-authored a book with Democratic strategist Celinda Lake called What Women Really Want. The description says the authors “discover common causes with which women are inventing a new age of opportunity,” so she’s not ignorant of that conversation. She could have a lot to say and be a respected example if she’d settle down and think. Some female examples who come to mind are Condoleezza Rice and Michelle Obama.

More: 10 Awesome Feminist Quotes From Republican Congresswomen

But right now, Conway's flailing, more interested in talking points and impressing her party than having informed conversations. Her latest move – shunning the label worn proudly by women who earned her the right to vote, work and have a voice — is a gigantic, massive... dare I say, yuuuuge misstep.

Before you go, check out our slideshow below.

When Maxine Waters is talking, everyone had better just shut up and listen. There's really no other answer. Chris Hayes may have thought there was, but he just learned.

More: Oprah Winfrey Might Actually Have a Plan to Take Donald Trump Down

Waters, a Democratic Representative from California, just casually swung by All In With Chris Hayes this week, and by the time she finished with the place, Hayes was just a sad shell of the man he once was. Waters didn't show up to mess around. She showed up to go on a six-minute rant straight up obliterating President Donald Trump and everyone he's ever worked with, thought about working with, almost worked with, been in a room with or looked at. It would be hard to watch if it weren't just so fire.

More: John Oliver Has a Great Plan for Educating President Trump

Hayes tried. He really did. He spent most of the time Waters was on his show just trying to say even one single thing, but he should have known better. Waters was not there to let others talk. She was there to say what she needed to say and show no mercy in the process. Does this look like the face of a woman who's ready to listen to someone arguing with what she's saying?

The interview even starts out with kind of a slow build. Waters starts talking, and she's making some good points, like how Russia really wants the American government on its side so it can have sanctions lifted so it can get to drilling like crazy for oil and gas, and it's just another news interview. And then. And. Then. Waters reaches into her purse, she puts on her reading glasses and she pulls out a list of every person who has ever wronged the country and she starts to read. Oh, it is glorious. Everyone on that list had better watch the fuck out, because Maxine Waters is coming and ya girl is not going to step down.

Hayes just stares at her, eyebrows raised, by the time she's done. Same, man. Same.

More: What Donald Trump Said About Princess Diana After Her Death Is Vile

Before you go, check out our slideshow below.

Rhea Butcher started trending on Friday for speaking up in light of the Trump administration's decision to strip away federal guidelines for trans kids' bathroom use at school. Butcher's response, which was posted in multiple tweets, is deeply personal and moving, and it highlights how complicated and terrifying it is to be a child who is "different" from the status quo.

"I spent my entire life terrified of public bathrooms," Butcher, who identifies as nonbinary, tweeted before going on to vividly describe being harassed and assaulted as a child for entering a women's restroom. "I am serving jury duty right now. Moments ago, I had to reassure a confused woman that she was, indeed, in the women's restroom," Butcher continued. "This happens every day to trans, nonbinary, genderqueer folks. We have to hide or edit or confront. Eyes everywhere. Every. Single. Day. And this law is about KIDS. Children. Little tiny people. Forced to enter a space that scares them. Told by adults they are wrong."

More: Caitlyn Jenner, Literal Trump Supporter, Weighs In on Transgender Bathroom Rule

Butcher's statement perfectly echoes what trans advocates have been saying, so why is this the first time her eloquent words have gone viral? That's a good question, because this certainly isn't the first time Butcher has gotten political. Her stand-up comedy, her social media accounts, her TV show, her podcast — shit, her whole life — are peppered with strong statements about her views on today's society.

Here are some examples.

1. When she broke down what it's like to be a woman in comedy

In 2015, Butcher talked about what it's like being a woman in the comedy world.

"When a woman walks on stage, people go, 'Wait, what? Huh?' in a way that they don't with men," Butcher said in an interview, which you can watch above. "When a guy walks on stage, people go, 'OK'... When a woman walks on stage, they're just, like, scanning the whole the whole thing and going, 'Like, wait, I'm not sure what this is. Who is this person? Why are they here? Is she supposed to be on stage?' It's not even looks, like whether you're hot or not. It's just the fact that you are a woman and you're not a man. Being a man is a default."

2. When she joked about the way the TSA addresses her

Butcher has a hilarious bit in her stand-up routine in which she talks about how the TSA can't seem to address her correctly — but she's cool with it because that's how she knows she's got good hair.

"You guys, I got my hair cut recently," Butcher opens, and the crowd cheers. "Thank you. Thank you for your support of my haircut. I know it's a good haircut, not only because you appreciate it, but because when I went through the airport the other day, I got an equal number of 'ma'ams' and 'sirs.' Right down the middle. Perfect. It's working."

Print doesn't do it justice. You have to watch it in the video above.

3. She stands with Standing Rock

Butcher is very vocal on social media about the Standing Rock situation and stands in solidarity with the Dakota Access Pipeline protesters. Her Instagram bio currently links out to standwithstandingrock.net, where you can get information about taking action against the pipeline.

More: Donald Trump Won't Watch the Oscars, But He Will Probably Hate on It

4. She's with her

On Presidents Day, Butcher posted a pic of Hillary Clinton with the simple caption, "Happy Presidents Day." Pretty much says it all.

5. She's totally over the Cleveland Indians mascot

Butcher, who is from Ohio and a huge baseball fan, recently made the decision to break up with her hometown team, and the Dakota Access Pipeline was a major catalyst.

"I’m trying to phrase this in a way that’s going to make the most sense in print, but I don’t want teams to have these logos. It’s wrong, and it’s racist. It’s 2016," she told the A.V. Club last year. "I tried as a fan to demonstrate that by only calling them 'Cleveland baseball' and only buying merchandise that uses the supposed primary logo of the block C, but I realized, at some point, I’m still supporting it. No matter what, I’m still supporting it. I’m still giving the team my money. I am trying to lead by an example, but I don’t know that it’s actually effecting that amount of change."

6. She's previously spoken out against Trump

"I am unsure if Donald Trump is a homophobe. I don’t think he is; I don’t give a shit if he is at this point... because he hasn’t said anything contradictory to the terrible stuff that’s gone on," Butcher said on Alison Rosen's podcast last summer. "The thing that I’m struggling with is, how do you engage with someone who, when you’re simply, like, smiling, you’re smug. If you’re being kind, you’re smug, or you’re talking down to them. And if you’re angry, well, you’re just a dumb angry liberal. Like, I don’t know how I’m supposed to tell you, like, I just want to feel safe walking down the street."

7. She's here for the animals, too

Butcher really will stick up for pretty much anyone who needs an advocate. A lifelong vegetarian (literally, her mom was vegetarian when she was pregnant with her), she says she stuck with the lifestyle not because she likes vegetables but because she likes animals. Granted, her vegetarianism also makes for some really great stand-up, as well.

More: How Celebrities & Activists Have Fought Trump Since He Was Sworn Into Office

Before you go, check out our slideshow below.

Bless Shania Twain for just casually doing what women everywhere wish they could: turn a big, messy breakup into profit.

More: 6 Female Celebs Who Married Much Older Men

Twain is set to release a new album for the first time in 15 years, and fans have her divorce to thank — it inspired her new music. Twain opened up to Rolling Stone about the new album, and all the fighting she had to do to even be able to record it, like overcoming a painful vocal cord disorder that prevented her from singing or even talking. Twain says the disorder could well have been caused by the stress of her divorce, and it has permanently deepened her voice, so fans are sure to notice.

"I’m a different singer now," she said. "There was a lot of coming to terms with that. It’s been one of the obstacles in my life I’ve just had to learn to live with."

More: Shania Twain Stalker Denied Bail, Goes on Courtroom Rant

Twain plans to drop her first single from the new album next month, though she didn't reveal which song it will be. The full album will drop in May and include "Who's Gonna Be Your Girl," what Twain describes as "a mournful ballad" about the end of her marriage.

"It’s about feeling unappreciated and knowing that you are secondary," she explained. "Having to live with someone that has different priorities and accepting that you’re not the most important thing in a person’s life."

Like so many singers before her who have also used their heartbreak to spur emotional songwriting, Twain likened making the album to therapy.

More: Shania Twain Talks Vegas, New Music and Her Beauty Secrets

"It helped me come to terms with a lot of things emotionally," she said.

Before you go, check out our slideshow below.

In news that will never not make me fist-pump with sheer glee, several different outlets are reporting that witches — literal witches — are banding together to stop President Donald Trump.

And they are not. Fucking. Around.

At midnight EST tonight and during every waning crescent moon while Trump holds office, thousands of witchcraft practitioners will gather together in the United States and across the globe to cast a spell to bind Trump "and all those who abet him."

Surprised that you find yourself fist-pumping the actions of witches? Don't be.

Historically, witches have been depicted in a negative light in both films and stories, often taking the form of an evil old woman, bent double with a black cape, an evil cackle and nefarious intentions.

More: Magical Witch and Warlock Baby Names

Real witches, however, argue that this depiction was created and maintained by misogynists afraid of the power of smart women — particularly women who could heal, counsel and teach others.

Witchcraft.org is quick to dispel these stereotypes, explaining, "Most modern witches are perfectly ordinary looking people, who you may well meet in your everyday life and not notice anything strange about them... Both men and women can be witches as they were in medieval times. It is often forgotten that in some countries more men were executed for witchcraft than women."

The site goes on to say that far from being evil Satan worshippers, witches often display a deep affinity for the natural world: "Witches as a group of people do tend to have some similarities. There is a deep regard for nature in all its forms in the religion, so many are members of a wide range of ecological and environmental groups. The respect for nature and animals also means many are vegetarians. They are people who believe that more exists in this world and beyond that can be easily explained by science alone. This means they have a spiritual aspect to them that is often missing in modern Western society. Wicca has both male and female deities and has a special respect for females. This female bias has resulted in many crossovers with feminist organizations."

More: 9 Books to Help You Become a Real Wicked Witch

Given these characteristics, it's no surprise to see powerful witches worldwide unite behind such a spectacular cause.

What exactly does this binding spell involve? Well, first of all, quite a few supplies:

The Witches Against Trump Facebook page (we told you these were modern witches) explains what the binding process seeks to achieve: "Binding spells, or defixiones, are some of the oldest in the historical record, and are nearly universal in the world’s magical systems. In this document, binding, which seeks to restrain someone from doing harm, is differentiated from cursing or hexing, which is meant to inflict harm on the target(s). It is understood, in this context, that binding does not generate the potential negative blowback from cursing/hexing/crossing, nor does it harm the caster’s karma.

"In other words, this is not the equivalent of magically punching a Nazi; rather, it is ripping the bullhorn from his hands, smashing his phone so he can’t tweet, tying him up, and throwing him in a dark basement where he can’t hurt anyone."

So, rather than wishing harm on President Trump, this spell seeks to restrain his power so that he is unable to harm others.

More: Are "Protests" Against the Trump Women Just Mean-Girl Misogyny in Disguise?

Who on earth could argue with that? If you've ever considered dabbling in witchcraft, the time is now! Gather your carrots and your candles, y'all. I'll see you at midnight!

Before you go, check out our slideshow below.

And we're back with our weekly Top Chef eliminee Q&A. If you haven't seen these before, please do not continue reading until you've watched the episode. I'm not here to ruin your Friday, and I sure as hell am not here to spoil the show for you.

More: Top Chef's John Tesar Says He & Katsuji Tanabe Are Friends IRL

For those still around, let's get to it.

First off, fellow Sheldon Simeon fans, are you also in mourning? I purposely wore black today because I'm still not 100 percent after watching our fave cheftestant get kicked off the show again, finishing in third place yet again. Damn, and here I thought he'd make it all the way! Yes, it's fantastic to see two women as the final two, and yes, Brooke Williamson and Shirley Chung absolutely deserve to be the final two. But that doesn't mean we're not all Williamson right now:

More: Top Chef's Brooke Williamson Spills the Beans on Shirley Chung's Sleeping Habits

Or Padma Lakshmi:

Or friggin' Tom Colicchio for that matter!

See, everyone's bummed about this. Not a dry eye in America right now.

But let's get to it, shall we? Without further ado, Simeon's Q&A...

SheKnows: Were you surprised by your elimination?

Sheldon Simeon: A little bit. Although it was my worst showing of the season and I knew that I screwed up on my fish, I hoped that the judges would see the effort and creativity I put into the dish as a whole.

SK: What was it like working with all the judges on the show? Who's the most intimidating?

SS: I enjoyed it. We experienced a lot of things together. I'm always excited to see them, and I have nothing but the utmost respect for all of the judges. I never thought any of them were intimidating; I was more stoked at the opportunity to cook for them and excited to see their reactions to my food.

SK: Which contestant do you think deserves to win? Or who are you rooting for?

SS: All of the chefs are super talented.

SK: Who did you consider your biggest competition?

SS: Myself. From the beginning, it was always a competition against myself.

SK: Was there anyone on the show you really clashed with? Who was it and why?

SS: Nobody. I've never been into drama.

More: Top Chef's Katsuji Tanabe Has One More John Tesar Burn Left in Him

SK: What's one thing that happened behind the scenes that viewers didn't get to see on the show?

SS: Viewers didn't get to see that the main source of nutrition were gummy fruit snacks. Also, I had some leftover pesos after shopping for ingredients for the last quickfire in Mexico, and on my way back, I gave the rest to kids playing in the streets.

SK: Who do you think deserved to go home on last night’s episode?

SS: Not me.

SK: What was the best experience you had on the show?

SS: The walk from the kitchen of Edna Lewis to where we served the judges and guests. There was just something beautiful about the beauty of the place that brought out emotions tied to my mom and grandma.

SK: What was the biggest challenge for you on the show?

SS: Dealing with my back injury. I really thought I was going home in the BBQ episode. Grinding it out knowing that I was hurt and finally deciding to ask to get treatment for it was a huge challenge.

SK: Who's your favorite Top Chef contestant of all time and why?

SS: Paul Qui. I was super inspired by a fellow Filipino even before he came on the show and then watched him kill it.

Before you go, check out our slideshow below.

Cat tongues are cool. They’re also weird and rough, scratchy, dry and utterly bizarre to look at up close — but mostly cool. This is a point not lost on the multitude of scientists who have devoted full studies and papers to the differences in cat tongues.

Recently, scientists at Georgia Tech went so far as to print a cat tongue on a 3-D printer at 400 percent scale. Doctoral candidate Alexis Noel and her research team discovered the cat’s tongue is a far better comb and detangler than the hairbrush we humans use. “When the cat's tongue hits a snag, it pulls on the hooks [the rough part of a cat’s tongue], which rotate to penetrate the snag even further. Like a heat-seeking missile for snags, the hook's mobility allows the cat to better tease tangles apart,” Noel told Science Daily. She believes the findings could not only revolutionize human hairbrushes, but also have implications in the human medical field.

See a cat’s tongue up close

"A typical hairbrush has spines that stick straight out. When hair collects on the brush it forms a thick mat that must be removed by hand," Noel explained. "In comparison, the cat's flexible spines make it easier to clean. When not in use, the spines on a cat tongue lie nearly flat against its surface, like overlapping shingles. This configuration provides openings in a single direction, enabling the mat of hair around the bristles to be removed with a single finger [or tongue] swipe."

More: 9 of Your Most Pressing Cat Health Questions Answered

So, in celebration of this amazing feline feature, we wanted to share a few other fun and little-known facts about your cat’s tongue. Some of them might even help you save your cat’s life one day!

1. The “rough stuff” on your cat’s tongue are called papillae

The rough sensation you get when your cat licks you is due to the papillae on its tongue. Even though our human tongues have papillae (also known as “taste buds”), they feel remarkably different. Papillae on a cat’s tongue are longer and have far more keratin — giving them the scratchy, dry feeling. The exact reason cat’s papillae look and feel so different is unknown, but they do play a large role in helping cats stay clean and healthy.

2. Cats can’t taste sweets, but may taste things we don’t

After years of anecdotal evidence that cats don’t perceive sugar the way most mammals do, biochemist Joe Brand from Monell Chemical Senses Center and his colleague Xia Li confirmed it. “They don't taste sweet the way we do,” Brand told Scientific American for its article "Strange but True: Cats Cannot Taste Sweets."

However, the same study found that they may be tasting something else. “Cats can taste things we cannot, such as adenosine triphosphate (ATP), the compound that supplies the energy in every living cell.”

3. Cat tongues play a critical role in your cat’s health

“Cats' tongues may be the busiest part of their anatomy.” Notes Animal Planet’s article "Crazy Cat Anatomy Facts." “They lick their coats not only to keep clean, but to regulate their body temperatures, fluffing up the fur in winter and wetting it down with saliva to stay cool in summer.”

The tongue also collects skin flakes, fur, fleas and dirt. This debris is swallowed and digested by stomach acid. If the stomach acid cannot fully digest it, typical in longhaired or older cats, hairballs may form. This can cause problems, especially if the hairballs don’t fully digest. Longhaired cats get a grooming boost from regular brushing, which removes loose hair so they don’t have to.

More: How Much Does It Actually Cost to Own a Cat?

4. A “lazy” grooming or unkempt appearance can be a sign that something is wrong

If your cat’s tongue just isn’t cutting it grooming-wise, it’s a good time to schedule a vet visit. Reasons for poor grooming can run the gamut, from obesity to pain, disease, malnutrition and other issues.  “Most [cats] tend to be quite fastidious about their appearance, and the ability to clean themselves is not only important to the way [they] look but also the way they feel,” notes vet Christie Long in her PetCoach article "5 Good Reasons to Put Your Cat on A Diet." “Cats who are overweight frequently have matted fur and flaky skin on the lower parts of their bodies, and these can increase their discomfort.” (Learn more about cat obesity and grooming.)

5. An overgroomer can be a sign of stress or other issues

If your cat begins to develop bald spots, a trip to the vet can help you determine whether kitty’s actually pulling out hair with his tongue or losing it due to a problem with something else. Stress and emotional issues sometimes cause kitty tongues to go into hyper-grooming drive, but other issues like thyroid conditions, allergies and even mites present in a similar way. (Read more about the causes of overgrooming in cats.)

6. Tongue and gum color can indicate whether your cat’s getting enough oxygen

Did you know that your cat’s tongue and gums change color if kitty’s not getting enough oxygen? “A pale pink, white or blue... [could] mean your pet is not getting a proper amount of oxygen throughout the body,” notes vet Dana Koch in her PetCoach article "Signs of Cancer in Dogs and Cats." “If your pet is having shortness of breath, coughing, wheezing or tiredness after exercise, then you should seek veterinary evaluation as soon as possible.” (Be prepared: See other signs of cancer in cats and learn about kitty first aid and CPR.)

7. Tongues need to be checked by your vet

Changes in color aren’t the only thing your vet will look for during your cat’s regular checkup. The tongue and jaw are more prone to getting certain types of cancer, and issues like mouth ulcers can be a sign of kidney disease. So don’t forget to book kitty that annual or biannual exam to keep your cat as happy and healthy as long as possible.

8. Cat tongues are magical when drinking water

Cats literally go against the force of gravity to drink — with the tip of their tongue. The tip of the tongue moves downward, lightly touches the liquid and then darts back into the mouth, creating a trail of liquid behind it.

Watching cats lap water is pure magic.

…but some don’t drink enough of it

“The general consensus nowadays is that our domesticated felines should be encouraged to drink plenty of water, since it is necessary in order to keep them adequately hydrated,” says veterinarian Tomasz Wnuk. But how do we get our sometimes difficult cats to drink more? Check out Wnuk’s other tips for avoiding cat dehydration.

Their tongues may be more highly evolved, dumbfounding us in their hairbrush technology and antigravity lapping, but at least we can eat — and enjoy — ice cream.

Welcome back to Parental Advisory, where I answer all of your social media and IRL parenting etiquette questions. This week, let's talk about people who compare parenthood to getting a Ph.D.

Question:

Dear STFU Parents,

I recently completed my PhD debt-free and was lucky enough to get an academic job. I’m finding that some of my friends who have kids want to compare child-rearing to getting a PhD. They insist on saying things like, “My baby is my PhD”, “Raising children is much harder than getting a doctorate”, “Oh you think you’ve worked hard? Wait till you have a kid.” Some of these comments also come from women who dropped out of graduate school to raise families, a choice I support and understand. I don’t really want to rain on anyone’s parade here, but I’m not sure these are fair comparisons, specifically because these are completely different life goals/experiences. How do I shut down these comments without being a snob?

Best,

Dr. Prof. Fed Up

Answer:

First of all, congratulations on such a monumental accomplishment and on completing it debt-free! If there's anyone who's earned the right to be a snob sometimes, it's people who have finished their Ph.D.s. That's not to say I support someone's desire to hold a Ph.D. just so they can justify their snobbery, but in this instance, I get it.

You're listening to friends compare apples to oranges — except the apples are "babies" and the oranges are "a degree that takes the average student 8.2 years to complete" — and you're wondering how the hell parents feel entitled to say such things, much less think such things, and why they should be able to get away with it. You worked your ass off for years to get this degree, and the last thing you need to hear is some cloying comparison to having a baby.

This is a topic that's been debated before, particularly around 2010 when parents started writing never-ending listicles that compared having a baby to everything from "being in a frat house" to "being in combat." Anyone else remember the "having a baby is not like being in combat" controversy of 2011 or whatever? Trust me, it was big news on the internet for at least a few days, and it inspired many a hot take. Why? Well, because having a baby is actually like having a baby, and nothing like going to war. Do soldiers sip coffee out of stainless steel thermoses while pushing $700 strollers across the desert? Do they "nap when the enemy is napping"? Are they lucky enough to be recipients of gluten-free meal trains? No.

It's always insulting when parents of young children imply that no one is as tired as they are, but it's especially irritating when they say it to people who are working to make the world a better, smarter, safer, more educated and healthier place to live. "Raising the next generation" is hard, to be sure, but rocket science is harder. Being in combat is harder. And yes, getting a Ph.D. is harder.

How do I know? For one thing, "according to U.S. Census 2013 data, 1.68 percent of Americans over the age of 25 have a Ph.D. This equates to approximately 2.5 million people." Compare that to the percentage of mothers in the U.S., which is over 40 million. This is why you struggle to make sense of your friends' jokes/observations/passive-aggressive comparisons — because there truly is no comparison.

You feel special because you have a Ph.D., and let me tell you, you are special because you have a Ph.D.! If your friends who happen to be moms can't absorb those statistics and admire you for achieving this academic goal, then maybe they're not the greatest friends to have. The upside is you'll probably meet even more people in academia who can relate to this now that you're diving into your career. The downside is you don't want to have tension with your friends, and yet you feel understandably disrespected each time your milestone is disregarded or compared to parenthood.

I've run two examples of "Ph.D. mommyjacking" in the past, and they both blew my mind. Here are the submissions reprinted from STFU, Parents:

I'm sure you can relate to these examples, Dr. Prof., and it helps to know you're not alone. I think you should ask yourself what you think the women in these examples should have said to their "friends" when they made these statements. Do you think they were within their rights to snap back? I do.

But the thing about having a Ph.D. means you can choose your responses thoughtfully, with precision. You know you don't have anything to prove to anyone. You've already proven so much to yourself. But if you do decide to say something, maybe you should reframe your remarks as "jokes" and give your friends a taste of their own medicine. Instead of saying, "You know, getting a Ph.D. is a hell of a lot harder than having a baby," you can say, "I guess it makes sense that your baby is your Ph.D. I know if I had a baby right now, I'd have to defend my reasons for having one every single day!" (ZING!) I assure you if you say that, your friend will recognize that having a baby and getting a Ph.D. are nothing alike.

You can also just be honest and say, "I know it might not look like it, but getting a Ph.D. is harder than learning how to use a nasal aspirator." Don't be afraid to stand up for yourself, even if it makes you look "bitchy." Some moms have a way of looking down on women who haven't yet had or don't want to have kids, and that condescension shouldn't be excused, even if it stems from feelings of personal insecurity. Society already tells women that their No. 1 goal in life should be to have babies, so the last thing a hardworking academic like you needs, Dr. Prof., is a "friend" who isn't willing to acknowledge your non-baby-related feats.

That being said, don't discount the potential sanctimommies you'll come across in your job, either. They exist, and they are very proud of themselves.

"Almost up there with childbirth" is Celinda's way of saying, "Nothing, and I mean nothing, can compare to the intensity of childbirth." And perhaps that's true, if we're comparing apples to oranges. Just remember, Dr. Prof., that even if you continue to encounter women who either downplay your skill set or brag on themselves for "having it all," you don't need their approval or even their well wishes. With or without them, you completed your Ph.D. debt-free and have a job in academia. And the next time someone has the audacity to tell you that “raising children is much harder than getting a doctorate,” I give you full permission to take a deep breath, look that person square in the eye and confidently say, "No, it isn't." There really isn't a contest since each of these things requires different types of mental and physical stamina, but since your friends are acting like it's a contest... who says you can't win?

Do YOU have a question about parents on social media? Send whatever is on your mind to stfuparentsblog AT gmail.com!

Friday Night Lights was not a show about high school football. It was about Tammy Taylor. And Nashville isn’t really a show about Nashville. It’s about Rayna James. And that is because Connie Britton is inescapably charismatic. Her hair is perfect and full of secrets. She’s defying all Hollywood stereotypes for an “older actress” as she continues to make shows with her sheer presence. She also is one of the prettiest people, and I hope my daughters all look like her instead of me. So, having said all of that, you can guess that it’s a pretty big deal that her character was killed off last night on Nashville.

More: Now That Nashville's Over, Will Jonathan Jackson Return to General Hospital?

We’re basically all dead now because when Connie Britton eats a cheeseburger and dies, we all eat a cheeseburger and die too. No, but seriously that’s what happened. Kind of. The show’s choice of how to kill Rayna was interesting. After she evades a knife attack from a stalker, her vehicle is hit by a truck. And in what can only be described as soap opera-level tomfoolery, everyone thinks Rayna's going to be fine until she flatlines. All I have to say is that it’s a little obvious. It didn’t feel like good TV, outside of the sheer shock value.

What else seemed kind of lazy is that Rayna had already almost died in a really dramatic car accident when a drunk Deacon grabbed the wheel during a fight — proving for the millionth time that he’s an unshakable fuckup (and yet, she still marries him. Which is probably why she died. Honestly, the universe was like, “You failed the test, girl”). And that episode was a season-ending cliffhanger-level big deal. So, why do it again? Also, with this right after Juliette single-handedly survived a fucking plane crash, it seems the Nashville writers are on the good drugs, because these things don’t really happen.

More: 4 Reasons Nashville Kind of Sucks Now

When your show is based on a real town, a real industry, and loosely based on real people (also, for the hundredth time, Rayna is Shania Twain, not Faith Hill), one would think they would at least have events be plausible. But as much as I want to believe real-life Nashville mayor Megan Barry is a high-dollar madam, I guess Nashville doesn’t keep too close to real life — as evidenced by the show’s mayor, Teddy Conrad, getting extorted and then framed by a prostitute. Not to mention all of the hats people wear, the ease with which everyone makes it big, how much people fucking love the Blue Bird café, and the fact that no one has ever made fun of Scarlet’s accent. (Can you tell I live in Nashville?)

But enough on how it happened. Let’s talk about why it happened. It happened because Connie Britton is too much of a goddess to be told what to do. It’s rumored around town that she wasn’t pleased with the show continuing to be filmed in town and wanted the production to move to Los Angeles. Which isn’t to say that Britton hasn’t been amazingly supportive of Nashville, supporting local businesses, singing the city’s praises and campaigning for Barry. And it makes sense as an actress that she would have far more opportunities and flexibility if they filmed in LA. But on the other hand, there wouldn’t be a show without the town, so the fact that the show benefits the town is a plus.

More: Nashville Is Back From the Dead! Here's What We Need to See in Season 5

The saga of keeping the show in production has actually been almost as dramatic as the show itself. The city and state controversially granted the show millions of dollars in tax incentives to continue to film on location — and since that came out of taxpayers' pockets, some even protested (which is a silly thing to protest; go home, you’re white). And it can’t be doubted the show has been good for the city, if you measure things like that in tourism and notoriety (but please stop moving her, you’re giving us traffic, and we hate the ugly condos developers are building absolutely everywhere for you). It’s also been dramatic because, last May, ABC infamously pulled the plug on Nashville at the last minute, leaving fans with a series finale they thought would be a season finale (in which you literally didn’t know if Juliette had died or not). But CMT picked up the show, giving it a triumphant return on a new night and network.

Sources close to Britton told Variety that her exit was planned from the beginning of the transition to CMT. Why she would want to leave a show with such a cult following is both a mystery and obvious. She’s probably tired of having to wear sequins. They were running out of interesting plot lines for her, outside of her fledgling label and Deacon’s dumb ass. Really, I think she was just above not being on a major network.

But no matter what the reason was, Connie Britton is gone, Rayna James is dead, and outside of checking out her funeral, there is literally no reason to watch the show anymore. I can tell you how it will end: Juliette glares herself into another dimension. Scarlet and Gunnar become the country music version of the Duggars. Will Lexington Clay Aikens and becomes a politician but stays attractive. Avery remains successful but low-key and continues to struggle with his hair/facial hair situation. And Maddie and Daphne become the Watson Twins, but for someone less indie than Jenny Lewis, like Kelly Clarkson or something.

While many viewers will be on the edge of their seats this Sunday night, waiting to see who takes home an Oscar, one award category in particular has been gathering scrutiny for an entirely different reason.

Casey Affleck has been nominated in the Best Actor category for his role in Manchester by the Sea. Although often overshadowed by his more famous older brother, Ben, Casey is a veteran of the film industry with dozens of acting credits to his name. He's also the subject of several disturbing sexual assault allegations.

More: People Are Outraged by the Double Standard for Nate Parker and Casey Affleck

Amanda White, a producer on Casey's experimental documentary I'm Still Here, alleges that he repeatedly harassed her during the 2008 filming. White's complaint alleges that Casey repeatedly referred to women as "cows," discussed his sexual exploits with her and tried to intimidate her into joining him in his hotel room.

The film's director of photography, Magdalena Gorka, echoes White in her complaint, claiming that the treatment she received at the hands of Casey Affleck was "the most traumatizing of her career," including waking up one night with Affleck — her married boss — curled up behind her, drunk and caressing her body.

Affleck ended up settling the allegations out of court, but many are still incensed about his nomination, saying that awarding the actor will also offer a tacit endorsement of his alleged behavior.

One of the most outspoken celebs on the issue has been Constance Wu: 

More: Constance Wu Is Going In on the Oscars for Nominating Casey Affleck

In this tweet, Wu takes on those who argue that art should stand independent from its artist, stating that it's irrelevant if Manchester by the Sea is a significant work of art or not. If it's truly great, she says, it will stand on its own regardless of the awards it wins (or loses). But presenting an award to Affleck to recognize his work as an individual actively ignores the grossly inappropriate way he has treated women.

Why does this issue matter so much?

Well, aside from the obvious fact that his alleged behavior is totally fucked up, the issue of promoting and rewarding a man despite such allegations is particularly relevant now, with President Donald Trump, who has admitted to sexually assaulting women, occupying the most powerful position in the country.

Despite the red herring argument often made about false allegations, some studies indicate that just 2.1 percent of sexual assault allegations are proven false and that we should really be concerned about what happens when an assault does take place.

The Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network reports that, although someone is sexually assaulted every 98 seconds in the United States, reporting rates for sexual assault are incredibly low and conviction rates are even lower.

The commonly cited argument for going easy on perpetrators of sexual assault, and likely one of the biggest reasons that just 310 of 1000 assaults are reported, is that such allegations will ruin a man's life or career (cough Brock Turner cough). But with an admitted abuser sitting in the Oval Office and another on track to win one of Hollywood's most prestigious awards, I think it's safe to say that this assertion has been proven total bullshit.

So, what do we do if Casey Affleck wins? There are a few things to put on your to-do list:

1. Refuse to stay silent about or condone sexual assault in any form from any person, whether they're a friend, a boyfriend, a celebrity idol or a political powerhouse.

2. Learn how to best support survivors of sexual assault and let it be known that you believe survivors.

3. Most importantly, become loudly intolerant of the systems that reward abusers or attempt to separate their actions from their professional performance. Don't support their movies, don't vote for them, don't promote them and don't ignore the allegations against them. Write letters, make phone calls and let it be known that this behavior is absolutely #NotOkay.

Before you go, check out our slideshow below.

Poor eyebrows—they’ve taken such a beating over the last few decades. Whether you plucked the hell out them, waxed them to smithereens, or slathered them with skin-burning growth serum for the better part of the last two years, they’re almost always getting fixed, destroyed, and messed with. But one angelic Reddit user wants to end the war against bad brows by telling the world her favorite trick for getting clean, even, happy brows, every single time.

More: The Best Under-$10 Hand Creams That Are Too Adorable Not to Buy

In a LPT (Life Pro Tip) posted a few hours ago on Reddit’s Makeup Addiction, one user shared her trick for avoiding the dreaded over-plucked brows, which we’ve all been victim to at least once (or one-hundred) times in our lives. Her trick: “Pluck brows after filling them in [to] avoid over-plucking,” says user Avoxel. “I have found that if I pluck after I fill them in, I have a clear line of where and where not to pluck so I don’t stray too far into the line and damage the shape of my natural brows.” Yes, your mind, our mind, and every Redditor’s mind are blown.

It’s so freaking obvious and simple, and yet why did we never think of that?! Pretty much every Reddit user has praised Avoxel for the tip so far, with a few users adding on their own variations, like viixxvii, who notes that “It’s even easier if you fill them in and then carve out the shape with concealer. If you have dark brow hair, it really helps highlight what needs to be plucked and also helps you see/change the shape.” And anyone who has ever accidentally slathered light-colored eyeshadow or concealer on a web of hair knows how visible and obvious those hairs become, so we could definitely see how this would up the ante of the trick.

So next time you’re going in for the pluck, take a few seconds to color your brows, first, with either a pencil (we’re obsessed with the Anastasia Brow Wiz) or a powder-and-wax combo, like Flower Complete Brow Kit in Take a Brow, and then get at those errant hairs. Your non-pencil-thin brows will thank you for it.

More: The 10 Best Drugstore Face Masks to Get Glowing, Dewy Skin

Originally posted on StyleCaster.com