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24662 |
ehd123 |
9 years ago |
Who plays the octobass?
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The Octobass, an instrument invented in 1849, stands 11 feet 5 inches tall! It plays notes lower than humans hear.
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28865 |
duddy |
9 years ago |
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18146 |
duddy |
9 years ago |
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18177 |
duddy |
9 years ago |
If you thought being left-handed was odd, read this
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A rare condition, known as situs inversus, is when a person has their major organs mirrored from their normal positions. So, for example, the heart would be on the right side of the body, or the liver and gall bladder are on the left side. It is a congenital condition (meaning it's tied to your genetics) that affects 1 in 20,000 people - including Spanish-born singer Enrique Iglesias. Situs inversus is generally an autosomal recessive genetic condition, although it can be X-linked or found in identical "mirror image" twins. ...
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25471 |
duddy |
9 years ago |
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30419 |
ehd123 |
9 years ago |
Mosquitoes have preferences too
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According to a new study published in the journal PLOS One, it was found that identical twins are equally attractive to mosquitoes than fraternal - or non-identical - twins. This correlation lead researchers to conclude that mosquitoes might be making preferential choices based on differences in our DNA. What causes this preferences? While it may be nice to believe that that mosquitoes are attracted to "sweeter blood", it's not true at all. Female mosquitoes - the ones that bite, in order to get protein necessary for egg development - are actually drawn to us by chemical signals related to body odour. ...
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17887 |
duddy |
9 years ago |
Kermit's ancestor
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The Hyalinobatrachium dianae glassfrog was just discovered! And people are saying he looks familiar.
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27167 |
duddy |
9 years ago |
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20779 |
duddy |
9 years ago |
The rainbow eucalyptus tree has its name because of its vibrant colored bark
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Eucalyptus deglupta, commonly called rainbow eucalyptus, is a very large, fast-growing, broadleaved evergreen tree that is native to moist humid tropical forested areas with high rainfall in New Guinea, Indonesia and the Philippine Islands (Island of Mindanao). It is perhaps best noted for its smooth orange-tinted trunk bark which peels in summer to reveal a unique and sometimes stunning multi-colored bark (as described by the common name of rainbow eucalyptus) consisting of streaks of pale green, red, orange, gray and purple-brown. ...
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26124 |
duddy |
9 years ago |
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16217 |
duddy |
9 years ago |
A lake above an ocean in the Faroe Islands
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The lake Leitisvatn/Sørvágsvatn sits about 30 metres above sea level. The Faroe Islands are an archipelago between the Norwegian Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, approximately halfway between Norway and Iceland, 320 kilometres (200 mi) north-northwest of mainland Scotland. The area is approximately 1,400 km 2 with a 2010 population of 50,000. Here's another look. ...
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13938 |
duddy |
9 years ago |
Which box has the car?
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Time for a riddle! There are 3 boxes. One of them has a car that you get to keep. On each box there is a statement. You know that only one of these statements is true.
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19623 |
duddy |
9 years ago |
A town with nothing to offer
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Welcome to Town Nothing! In Arizona, USA, there is a town known as the town of Nothing, literally. It is now completely abandoned, offering people nothing but a good place to film a western movie.
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20664 |
duddy |
9 years ago |
Converse shoes are the best
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Originating in the late 1800s, the term "sneaker" referred to the near silent sound of walking in rubber soles.
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22063 |
duddy |
9 years ago |
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21600 |
duddy |
9 years ago |
Ever seen a black flamingo?
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On the Mediterranean island of Cyprus, you might be lucky to find a black flamingo. Normal flamingoes are born white and grey, and turn their iconic shade of pinky orange around the age of two, as a result of the high carotenoid content of the algae and crustaceans that they eat. Experts believe that this individual (and potentially the other bird spotted in Israel) has a genetic condition that causes it to overproduce melanin, changing its feathers to black.
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21775 |
duddy |
9 years ago |
These wannabe spiders use thorn-like weapons on their arms to attack small prey
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Belonging to the class Arachnida, Amblypygids, also known as whip spiders or tailless whip scorpions, form a separate order of arachnids alongside the spiders, scorpions, and others. The name "amblypygid" means "blunt rump", a reference to a lack of the flagellum ("tail"). They are harmless to humans, and possess no silk glands or venomous fangs. They rarely bite if threatened, but can grab fingers with pedipalps (thorn-like appendages), resulting in thorn-like puncture injury. ...
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22357 |
duddy |
9 years ago |
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21582 |
duddy |
9 years ago |
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21000 |
duddy |
9 years ago |
Some birds are afraid of butterflies
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It turns out that butterflies with eyelike spots evolved to scare off predators. A recent study concluded that about 68% of the birds that were shown an image with eye-mimicking spots, flew away or showed signs of being startled such as chirping a warning call as they flew in for food (within a controlled setting). That’s on par with the 57% showing the same reactions to the owl with open eyes, the research team notes. The full study can be analyzed in the link below: Source: http://rspb.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/282/1806/20150202 ...
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31781 |
duddy |
9 years ago |
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32299 |
duddy |
9 years ago |
Balding? Try deliberately plucking your hair
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While it may sound counter-intuitive, new research suggests that selectively plucking hairs in very close proximity can stimulate some startlingly dense regrowth. The team behind the study, led by researchers at the University of Southern California, demonstrated that by carefully extracting 200 hairs, one-by-one, from the back of a mouse in a specific configuration and density, they could trigger the growth of around 1,200 new hairs in the area - a five-fold increase. The biological mechanism is shown below: While it's very early days, the researchers say their findings, which were reported in the journal Cell, could pave the way for new treatments for balding, or alopecia. ...
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17099 |
duddy |
9 years ago |
Could I borrow your head for a second?
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A 30-year-old Russian man has announced that he will volunteer to transplant his head onto another person's body. Earlier this year, Italian surgeon Sergio Canavero outlined the transplant technique he intends to follow in the journal Surgical Neurology International, a procedure that is predicted to last 36 hours, and requiring the assistance of 150 doctors and nurses. "I would not wish this on anyone," says top surgeon. Watch Dr. Sergio Canavero speak about head transplantation below. ...
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14300 |
duddy |
9 years ago |
Why are the Dutch so tall?
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If you've ever been to the Netherlands, you probably noticed one of two things a) nearly everyone rides a bike or b) you're a lot shorter than everyone there. According to statistics, this countries population has gained an impressive 20 centimeters in the past 150 years and is now officially the tallest on the planet. While a rich diet and good health care is always a recipe for physical growth, a new study suggests something else is going on as well: The Dutch growth spurt may be an example of human evolution in action. The study, published online today in the Proceedings of the Royal Society B, shows that tall Dutch men on average have more children than their shorter counterparts, and that more of their children survive. That suggests ge ...
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17903 |
duddy |
9 years ago |
Try dates, not honey
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While they are super sweet, syrup made from this ancient fruit has antibacterial compounds that are more effective than honey. In case you've never had it or seen it before, dates are a thick, dark brown, and super-sweet fruit used in Middle Eastern cuisine. New research suggests that date syrup contains chemical compounds that help ward off a number of bacterial infections, including those caused by Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli. This was discovered after scientists inhibited the growth of these pathogens for about six hours, which researchers say is faster than manuka honey - a honey known for its antibacterial and wound healing properties. ...
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29891 |
duddy |
9 years ago |
Miss your Game boy? Bring it back with this device
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Known as the Smart Boy, now you can convert your smartphone into an interactive playable console. The coolest feature? The Smart Boy will also work with original Game Boy and Game Boy Color game cartridges, which will slot into the back of the device.
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18923 |
duddy |
9 years ago |
Tiny bird packs a big punch
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This blackpoll warbler ( Setophaga striata), weighing no more than 12 grams can migrate over the Atlantic Ocean from New England and eastern Canada to the Caribbean islands - a 2500 kilometer flight - nonstop! These finding were discovered after researchers tagged these little birds with miniature geolocators on their backs. They concluded that no other "bird this size migrates for this long in one go... it is truly one of the most amazing migratory feats ever recorded." ...
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21825 |
duddy |
9 years ago |