odds & ends item from JUNE-AUGUST 2009
Fast FactsDid you know...
• Not Ticklish: It is impossible for you to tickle yourself. The brain knows your hand is moving, anticipates the sensation, and ignores it.
Source: Getty Creative Images
• Ahead of Its Time: The cockroach is able to survive for several weeks without its head. It only dies after this period because of hunger.
• You Are What You Eat: Pink is not a flamingo’s natural color. The bird acquires this hue from its diet. One species turns pink from eating shrimp, another species from consuming blue-green algae, which turns pink during digestion.
• High Enough: Due to Earth’s gravity, it is impossible for a mountain to be higher than 49,212.59 feet.
• Debate Team: You use 72 different muscles when you speak.