Category Archives: Science

Aug 02 2016
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Natural World, Science

Fact #1157: The ‘Dog Days’ of summer are actually defined as the period from July 3 through August 11, when the Dog Star, Sirius, rises in conjunction (or nearly so) with the Sun.

Source: http://www.space.com/8946-dog-days-summer-celestial-origin.html

Jul 25 2016
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Natural World, Science

Fact #1151: Psychiatrists have redefined “Pathological Grooming” such as skin-picking, hair-pulling, and nail-biting as similar to OCD, and they are considered often to be virtually uncontrollable.

Source: http://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2012/10/01/161766321/nail-biting-mental-disorder-or-just-a-bad-habit

Jun 24 2016
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Science

Fact #1131: Bubbles from a bubble bath thermally insulate the surface of the water, keeping the bath warm for a longer period of time.

Source: http://www.thenakedscientists.com/HTML/questions/qotw/question/3111/

Jun 22 2016
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Science

Fact #1129: There is a Golden Goose Award, which is a prize that honors “scientists whose federally funded work may have been considered silly, odd, or obscure when first conducted but has resulted in significant benefits to society.”

Source: http://www.goldengooseaward.org/

Jun 17 2016
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Natural World, Science

Fact #1126: Lightning serves an important role in the nitrogen cycle by oxidizing diatomic nitrogen in the air into nitrates, which are deposited by rain and can fertilize the growth of plants and other organisms.

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lightning#Lightning_strike

Jun 13 2016
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People, Science

Fact #1122: One theory on why we are ticklish is that is serves as a mechanism for developing combat skills. Most often practiced from parent to child, tickling activates vulnerable areas on the body, causing a defensive reaction, while producing laughter that encourages the “attacker” to continue, allowing the “defender” to gain practice.

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tickling#Purpose

 

May 19 2016
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Science

Fact #1104: All of our general terrestrial radio and television signals become indistinguishable from background noise at only a few light years away from the Earth, thanks to the inverse square law.

However, direct messages can be sent using amplified power (in a narrow beam), and as a result, will take much longer to degrade. These short bursts are able to reach other star systems just fine, but require specific aim of the transmitter.

Source: http://zidbits.com/2015/11/where-are-all-the-aliens-what-is-fermis-paradox/

May 12 2016
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Science

Fact #1099: People are more gassy on airplanes because of changing cabin pressures.

Source: http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20141218-why-do-we-fart-more-on-planes

May 10 2016
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Natural World, Science

Fact #1097: There is a type of hypothetical stellar remnant called a Black dwarf stars. They are hypothetical because not enough time has passed to confirm their existence observation.

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_dwarf

Apr 27 2016
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Natural World, Science

Fact #1088: Emotions and facial expressions are so closely related that people who have had Botox treatment sometimes have difficulty experiencing happiness/sadness.

Source: http://www.cardiff.ac.uk/news/view/45697-treating-laughter-lines-leaves-patients-feeling-more-depressed

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