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 Posted: Fri May 23, 2008 11:55 pm
This is the place to share those little known and interesting facts you have stored away in the vast outcroppings of your brain. Little tid bits of info that you can use to make yourself look good and wise to the world.....or just some really odd things you'd like to share with the rest of us.
PLEASE make sure what you are posting is TRUE
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Posted: Fri May 23, 2008 11:56 pm
Does it really take seven years to digest chewing gum?
Bunk. This favorite falsehood passed on by parents and teachers was designed to scare us from ever swallowing the stuff. The truth is, it takes chewing gum no longer to digest than anything else you eat.
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Posted: Fri May 23, 2008 11:57 pm
Can you fail a drug test after eating a poppy seed bagel?
Yes. Poppy seeds come from opium poppies, the same flower used to produce heroin and morphine. You may not feel their narcotic effects from a handful of seeds sprinkled on a bagel, but they can produce a positive test result. So skip the carbs and order an omelet next time you suspect a drug test is in your future.
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Posted: Fri May 23, 2008 11:58 pm
Dead or married: Which is more likely for single women over 40?
Married. And "Newsweek" apologized 20 years later for their 1986 cover story that claimed single women over 40 were more likely to be killed by a terrorist than to find a husband. Turns out, they'd misinterpreted study data, but the myth didn't die with the retraction. For the record, a woman's chances of marrying over the age of 40 are closer to 40 percent. The chances of being killed by a terrorist on American soil? Less than one-hundredth of one percent.
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Posted: Fri May 23, 2008 11:59 pm
Does absinthe cause madness?
Nope. But alcoholism can, which is what scientists have deemed the probable cause of the drink's much-hyped reputation for causing hallucinations and dementia. The truth is, the emerald-green elixir, long thought to have fueled the creative juices of Picasso and Van Gogh, contains 70 percent alcohol, which likely explains the drink's mind-altering effects.
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Posted: Sat May 24, 2008 12:00 am
Can powdered pig's bladder re-grow a finger?
Um, contrary to news reports, no. The backstory: Lee Spievack of Cincinnati lost part of his finger in an accident and applied powdered pig's bladder to his wound. Four weeks later, he claimed, the finger grew back. What's wrong with this picture? He lost only the tip of his finger, not the full digit. So the finger healed. The real miracle? The same story broke more than a year ago. Only one journalist noticed it the second time around, though, while the rest of the news media picked up the finger story and ran.
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Posted: Sat May 24, 2008 12:01 am
Is your keyboard dirtier than a toilet seat?
Just how dirty is your QWERTY? Researchers in a recent study found E. coli and staph bacteria living among the grimy keys of keyboards, prompting the pronouncement that keyboards, like cell phones and desks, are dirtier than toilet seats.
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Posted: Sat May 24, 2008 12:03 am
Can a mule reproduce?
Rarely, but it happens. These horse-donkey hybrids are usually sterile. But in 2007, a mule in Colorado gave birth to a foal, dubbed the "mule miracle." Just how rare is such a birth? Well, the Romans had a saying, "When a mule foals," to describe such an extraordinary event. In translation: "When pigs fly."
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Posted: Sat May 24, 2008 12:04 am
Are dogs really smarter than cats?
Yep. Cats are smart, but dogs are smarter. How much smarter? Well, according to dog intelligence expert Stanley Coren, a dog's problem-solving abilities are equivalent to a human 2-year-old's. The average cat, on the other hand, operates with the cognitive capacity of an 18-month-old.
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Posted: Sat May 24, 2008 12:05 am
Did George Washington have wooden teeth?
Nope. Washington neither confessed to chopping down a cherry tree nor chewed with wooden chops. He did have several sets of dentures, though. For the record, his dentures were made from an array of materials, including gold, hippopotamus ivory and even donkey teeth — and a set is currently on display at the National Museum of Dentistry in Baltimore.
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Posted: Sat May 24, 2008 12:06 am
Did Mikey die from eating Pop Rocks and Coca-Cola?
Nope. Neither Mikey nor anyone else has died by simultaneously consuming Pop Rocks candy and Coca-Cola. The Life Cereal commercial was Mikey's single TV appearance, prompting rumors of his untimely, and unusual, demise. The truth is, John Gilchrist, who played little Mikey, is an advertising executive for a radio station in New York.
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Posted: Sat May 24, 2008 12:08 am
Somebody once figured out that we have 35 million laws trying to enforce the 10 commandments.
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Posted: Sat May 24, 2008 12:10 am
Apples, not caffeine, are more efficient at waking you up in the morning.
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Posted: Sat May 24, 2008 12:11 am
Forty-thousand Americans are injured by toilets each year.
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Posted: Sun May 25, 2008 10:29 pm
The average computer user blinks 7 times a minute.
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