Factoids
The ClubHouse: General Discussions - Jan -Apr. 2001: February:
Factoids
Soeur | Wednesday, February 21, 2001 - 05:22 pm  Survival of the Oddest? The Kiwi, national bird of New Zealand, can't fly, lives in a hole in the ground, is almost blind and lays only one egg each year. Yet is has survived for 70 million years. SOURCE: San Diego Zoo |
Soeur | Wednesday, February 21, 2001 - 05:23 pm  Neurologically Correct? A support group for people with autism has coined a new term for those who are not autistic- "neurologically typical". SOURCE: Independent Living |
Soeur | Wednesday, February 21, 2001 - 05:26 pm  Moving Experience Bore-hole seismometry indicates that the land in Oklahoma moves up and down 25cm throughout the day, corresponding with the tides. Earth tides are generally about one-third the size of ocean tides. SOURCE: Oklahoma Geological Survey |
Soeur | Wednesday, February 21, 2001 - 05:28 pm  SEVEN CHOICES Two-thirds of cancer deaths can be prevented by healthy lifestyle choices. The American Cancer Society suggests seven choices: Cut out tobacco Hold the fat Opt for high-fiber fruits, vegetables and grains. Intake of alcohol: only in moderation. Call your doctor for regular checkups Exercise every day Safeguard your skin from the sun. SOURCE: American Cancer Society |
Soeur | Wednesday, February 21, 2001 - 05:30 pm  Digital Confessional Alcoholics are twice as likely to confess a drinking problem to a computer than to a doctor, say researchers in Wisconsin. SOURCE: New Scientist, 10/97 |
Soeur | Wednesday, February 21, 2001 - 05:31 pm  Medication Nightmare The bathroom medicine cabinet is one of the worst places to keep medicines. The heat and moisture of the bathroom are just the conditions required to alter medication chemistry, making them weaker and possibly ineffective, and in some cases, toxic. A cool dry area away from sunlight and children is optimal. SOURCE: The University of Pittsburgh Medical Center |
Soeur | Wednesday, February 21, 2001 - 05:32 pm  Top 10 Backyard Birds The most frequently seen birds at feeders across North America last winter were the Dark-eyed Junco, House Finch and American goldfinch, along with downy woodpeckers, blue jays, mourning doves, black-capped chickadees, house sparrows, northern cardinals and european starlings. SOURCE: Project Feederwatch |
Soeur | Wednesday, February 21, 2001 - 05:33 pm  Eat Healthy Between three and four million cases of cancer worldwide -- 375,000 in the United States alone -- could be prevented annually through dietary change SOURCE: New report by the American Institute for Cancer Research and the World Cancer Research Fund |
Soeur | Wednesday, February 21, 2001 - 05:34 pm  Big Fish The largest Great White Shark ever caught measured 37 feet and weighed 24,000 pounds. It was found in a herring weir in New Brunswick in 1930. The harmless Whale Shark, holds the title of largest fish, with the record being a 59 footer captured in Thailand in 1919. SOURCE: Ocean Link |
Soeur | Wednesday, February 21, 2001 - 05:35 pm  Health Irony Men who donate blood have a 30% reduced risk of heart disease compared to those who do not. The difference is attributed to reduced levels of iron following blood donation. SOURCE: David Meyers, M.D., University of Kansas, in the journal Heart |
Soeur | Wednesday, February 21, 2001 - 05:37 pm  Tiny Tunes Nanotechnology has produced a guitar no bigger than a blood cell. The guitar, 10 micrometers long, has six strummable strings. SOURCE: Cornell University |
Soeur | Wednesday, February 21, 2001 - 05:37 pm  Sunny Weed Killer Sunflowers have long been used to control weeds in field crops. They possess a property called allelopathy by which they produce natural plant toxins around their roots. SOURCE: NY Times |
Soeur | Wednesday, February 21, 2001 - 05:39 pm  TRISKADEKAPHOBIA Triskadekaphobia, fear of the number 13, dates back to Nordic mythology. But the combination of Friday and the number 13 seems to have originated with Christ, whose last supper before his arrest seated 13 and he was crucified on a Friday. SOURCE: Dr. Thomas J. Fernsler, Mansfield University, Pennsylvania |
Soeur | Wednesday, February 21, 2001 - 05:40 pm  HIV Hot Zone Fourteen percent of the one million citizens of Nairobi, Kenya carry the AIDS virus. Some 20% of the Kenyan military is infected. SOURCE: Kenya's 'Daily Nation' |
Soeur | Wednesday, February 21, 2001 - 05:42 pm  TOXIC BREW There are more than 1,000 chemicals in a cup of coffee. Of these, only 26 have been tested, and half caused cancer in rats. SOURCE: Dr. Bruce Ames, UC Berkeley, in Smithsonian Magazine 12/95 |
Soeur | Wednesday, February 21, 2001 - 05:43 pm  POULTRY POWER The waste produced by one chicken in its lifetime can supply enough electricity to run a 100 watt bulb for five hours. SOURCE: Ireland's Minister of State for Energy, Mr. Emmet Stagg, announcing plans to promote the production of electricity from biomass and waste. |
Soeur | Wednesday, February 21, 2001 - 05:44 pm  Pearl Jam When you give the gift of pearls remember that these are actually entombed parasitic worms. The pearl process begins when larvae from parasitic flatworms burrow inside the oyster. The oyster encases the larvae to protect itself. SOURCE: Prof. Peter Fankboner, Simon Frasier University |
Soeur | Wednesday, February 21, 2001 - 05:45 pm  Eat Hearty Chocolate may actually be good for your heart. The beloved substance is high in antioxidants compounds known as flavonoids, which, among other things, inhibit the effects of LDL, the bad cholesterol. The darker chocolates are higher in the antioxidants. SOURCE: Mayo Clinic Health Letter |
Soeur | Wednesday, February 21, 2001 - 05:46 pm  Burger Power One Big Mac provides a 160 man with enough energy to recline on the couch wactching sports for nine hours. SOURCE: Eurkea! |
|