14754. Science Facts

Scabs are formed when chemical proteins react with special blood cells called platelets, which cause the blood to get sticky and clump together. Once you've clotted, lots of different chemicals and cells work together to dry out the clot and form a scab, keeping out germs while the cells underneath repair themselves. So, if you pick a scab you're messing with all your body's hard work!

14755. Science Facts

Piles of horse manure steam in cold weather because the action of bacteria breaking it down produces so much heat.The manure, filled with water and gas, is a good insulator, so it stays hot.

14756. Science Facts

In 2000, UK mountaineer Major Michael Lane gave to a museum five of his own fingers and eight of his toes which had dropped off as a result of frostbite when he was climbing Mount Everest in 1976.

14757. Science Facts

A French cement factory uses soiled nappies as fuel to heat its cement kilns.

14758. Science Facts

Volcanic vents deep under the sea are home to strange plants and animals that can live in high temperatures and poisonous, acidic water.

14759. Science Facts

Scientists studying Mormon crickets cut the heads off to see what the crickets had been eating – and found many had eaten other Mormon crickets. If one stopped to eat, another would often come along and eat it.

14760. Science Facts

Doctors used to test for diabetes by tasting the patient's urine – diabetes made it taste sweet because sugar was lost in it.

14761. Science Facts

The first frozen chicken was created by Sir Francis Bacon who stuffed a plucked chicken with snow in 1626 to experiment with refrigeration. It worked, but he died from a chill contracted during the experiment. The chicken is said to haunt Pond Square in London.

14762. Science Facts

It is possible to drown in mud – and almost impossible to save someone who is drowning in mud as so much force is needed to pull them against the weight of it.

14763. Science Facts

On the east coast of the USA there is a laboratory that leaves dead bodies of humans and animals outside to decay so that scientists can study the rate at which they rot, and the maggots and microbes that help them decompose.

14764. Science Facts

If blue whales tried to live on land, they would be crushed and suffocated by their own weight.They can live successfully in water because it supports them.

14765. Science Facts

In an experiment with a condemned prisoner, Doctor Beaurieux of France discovered in 1905 that a person – or head – can hear and respond for around 25 seconds after beheading.

14766. Science Facts

Diamonds are so hard they are often used as the tip of a dentist's drill because they can grind through teeth.

14767. Science Facts

Soap can be made by dissolving animal fat using an alkali such as sodium hydroxide. Soap used to be made from sheep or pig fat.

14768. Science Facts

Most bacteria are only about 0.00025 of a centimetre (0.0001 of an inch) across. But monster bacteria have been found at the bottom of the ocean off the coast of Africa. They are so big they can be seen without a microscope – they're each about the size of the dot of this full stop.

14769. Science Facts

Hungry huskies and polar bears have been known to attack explorers when they urinate – they are attracted by the smell.

14770. Science Facts

Honey kills germs. Spreading it on wounds can stop them becoming infected.

14771. Science Facts

Scientists have modified cockroaches, implanting electrodes in them to control their legs, and used them as living robots to carry cameras or explosives through tiny spaces.

14772. Science Facts

Amongst fuels investigated for use where (or when) oil and petrol are scarce, scientists have tried running cars and tractors on chicken faeces.

14773. Science Facts

Occasionally, babies are born with a full set of teeth.

Fact
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