Old window panes are thicker at the bottom because they were made that way, not because glass flowed. Glass is an amorphous solid; at room temperature it does not creep.
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Weird Facts
Pumice can float on water
Science
Gas bubbles trapped during eruption make pumice light enough to float until it becomes waterlogged.
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Pink lakes get color from salt-loving microbes
Science
Some salty lakes turn pink when algae or bacteria produce colorful pigments.
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Strangler figs grow around host trees
Science
Strangler figs start high in another tree, send roots downward, and can eventually surround the host.
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Blood Falls pours red water in Antarctica
Science
Iron-rich salty water oxidizes when it reaches the air, staining the ice red.
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A 1,000-year-old onion-and-garlic eye remedy worked against MRSA in lab tests
History
A medieval Anglo-Saxon eye salve recipe killed antibiotic-resistant bacteria in a 2015 laboratory test.
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Bromine is a liquid element at room temperature
Science
Bromine is one of the few elements that is liquid under ordinary room conditions.
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Rafflesia flowers smell like carrion
Science
Rafflesia produces enormous flowers that smell like rotting meat to attract flies.
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The Mpemba effect has hot water sometimes freezing faster
Phenomena
Under certain conditions, warmer water can freeze faster than cooler water, named after a Tanzanian student who noticed it.
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Bananas are slightly radioactive
Science
Bananas are rich in potassium, and a small fraction of natural potassium is the radioactive isotope K-40. The dose from one banana is utterly negligible (~0.1 microsieverts).
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Catatumbo lightning returns night after night
Science
A region near Lake Maracaibo in Venezuela is famous for frequent nighttime lightning storms.
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Frost flowers bloom from young sea ice
Science
Thin ice crystals can grow into delicate flower-like structures when cold air meets moist surfaces.
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The fastest land animal can't sustain its top speed long
Science
Cheetahs sprint at incredible speeds but can only maintain those bursts for seconds before risking overheating.
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Death Valley stones move on thin ice
Science
Sailing stones slide when wind pushes them across slick sheets of thin ice and wet mud.
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Brinicles are underwater icicles
Science
Cold salty brine can sink beneath sea ice and freeze seawater into a hollow icy tube.
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Slime molds can solve mazes
Science
Slime molds have found efficient paths through mazes despite having no brain.
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Some orchids imitate female insects
Science
Certain orchids attract male insects by mimicking the look or scent of potential mates.
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Baobab trees store water in swollen trunks
Science
Baobabs survive dry seasons partly by holding water in massive, spongy trunks.
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Bristlecone pines can outlive civilizations
Science
Some bristlecone pines have survived for thousands of years in harsh mountain conditions.
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Rain smell has a name
Science
Petrichor is the earthy smell after rain, helped by plant oils and geosmin from soil microbes.
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Supercooled water can freeze on command
Science
Very pure water can stay liquid below freezing, then crystallize suddenly when disturbed.
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Mammatus clouds hang like pouches
Science
Mammatus clouds form pouch-like lobes beneath storm clouds and look almost sculpted.
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Peat bogs can preserve ancient bodies
Science
Acidic, oxygen-poor bogs can preserve skin, hair, clothing, and tools for centuries.
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Aerogel is mostly empty space
Science
Silica aerogel is an extremely light solid with tiny pores that make it a powerful insulator.
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