What Does the Moon Smell Like?: 151 Astounding Science Quizzes (17 page)

is ten times more accurate than any manmade sonar system. Trained dolphins can pinpoint distant underwater mines with almost perfect accuracy. A

WE

blindfolded dolphin could detect something the size GO

of a tennis ball a football field away. In experiments, at a distance of eight metres (26 ft), dolphins could sense which aluminum cylinder’s walls were 0.23 millimetres (0.009 in) thicker than the rest. They echolocate by transmitting clicks lasting a fraction of a second and listening for the echoes, or reflected sounds. You know that the melon focuses the sound, but where does the echolocation click come from?

Where do echolocation clicks originate?

In the dolphin’s . . .

a) fish lips

b) horse lips

c) monkey lips

d) none of the above

221

A Little Echo and a Lot of Location

Where do echolocation clicks originate?

A

In the dolphin’s . . .

a) fish lips

b) horse lips

AWHALE

c) monkey lips

d) none of the above

WE

GO

CORRECT ANSWER:

c) monkey lips

Clicks are generated near the blowhole by the

“monkey lips,” the nickname biologists have for the dorsal bursa, or MLDB, complex. The monkey lips are a slit-like opening, and when air passes through them, they vibrate. Opening and closing the monkey lips creates a clack that makes the two fat-filled bursae near them vibrate, and they pass the sound wave to the melon. Are you wondering why they’re called monkey lips? When dolphin anatomy was first studied, French scientists thought that the slit-like opening resembled monkey lips, and called it
museau
de singe
, which means, literally, muzzle of the monkey. The French nickname was translated to

monkey lips, and it stuck.

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GERMyNATION: HOME INVASION

Poopy Toothbrushes

It’s not an urban legend! Of the toothbrushes tested Q

by The Germinator, 10% were contaminated with

fecal bacteria. It was one of the first of many puzzling discoveries made by The Germinator, a.k.a. microbiologist Chuck Gerba. His mission is to track down the baddest of the bad germs where they live. That’s how he found them partying on toothbrushes. It’s not as if people were cleaning the toilet with their toothbrushes, or rinsing their mouths with toilet water, so how was it happening?

Why were there fecal bacteria on the toothbrushes?

Because . . .

a) people contaminated them with unwashed hands b) people flushed the toilet with the lid up

c) the toothbrush holder was contaminated

d) they’d been dropped on the floor

223

Poopy Toothbrushes

Why were there fecal bacteria on the toothbrushes?

A

Because . . .

a) people contaminated them with unwashed hands b) people flushed the toilet with the lid up

GERMyNA

c) the toothbrush holder was contaminated

d) they’d been dropped on the floor

TION:

HOME

CORRECT ANSWER:

b) people flushed the toilet with the lid up

INV

ASION

Every toilet flush creates a plume of aerosols, tiny water droplets that carry bacteria and viruses up into the air. If the lid is down, it stops the plume from rising, but when the lid is up, the plume floats into the air and hangs around for at least two hours.

That’s more than enough time for the germs to settle on things nearby, including toothbrushes. To avoid a case of real potty mouth: store toothbrushes at least 1.8 metres (6 ft) away from the toilet, or inside a cabi-net, and put the lid down before you flush. Problem solved. No more poopy toothbrushes.

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Who’s the Cleanest of Them All?

You can’t see them, but bacteria are all over the Q

place. Most are harmless, but some are nasty

pathogens that can make you very ill. Where are these creepy perps hiding out? The Germinator went GERMyNA

into 15 average homes to track them down. He discovered all kinds of things, including who had the least germs at home.

TION:

HOME

Whose homes tended to be the least germy?

a) childless couples

INV

b) families with children

ASION

c) single females

d) single males

225

Who’s the Cleanest of Them All?

Whose homes tended to be the least germy?

A

a) childless couples

b) families with children

c) single females

GERMyNA

d) single males

TION:

CORRECT ANSWER:

HOME

d) single males

INV

Picture the stereotypical single male as seen in films ASION

and on TV: an unkempt-looking college student who never cleans or cooks, and only shovels out the mess in his place (maybe) when he’s expecting female company. He’d rather do anything other than clean the bathroom. You’d think that single males would have the germiest homes of all. But Dr. Gerba found the opposite. Why? Let’s see if you can figure it out.

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Swabbing the Poop Deck

The Germinator had expected to find fecal bacteria Q

in and around toilets in average homes, but he was surprised when they turned up in unexpected places in the bathrooms — on sinks, tubs, and countertops.

GERMyNA

Puzzling evidence, especially when you consider that bathrooms are often the most-cleaned area, except in the homes of single men, of course. Viruses and fecal TION:

coliform bacteria showed up in 80% of the bathrooms HOME

Dr. Gerba tested. Yet, according to an American survey, the average bathroom is cleaned about five INV

times a month. So why were there nasty germs all ASION

over the place?

What was spreading the most fecal bacteria?

a) children

b) cleaning

c) toilet flushing

d) ventilation fans

227

Swabbing the Poop Deck

What was spreading the most fecal bacteria?

A

a) children

b) cleaning

c) toilet flushing

GERMyNA

d) ventilation fans

TION:

CORRECT ANSWER:

HOME

b) cleaning

INV

When the scientists watched people cleaning their ASION

bathrooms, the scary answer was obvious. Almost half used a rag or sponge to clean the toilet, and then clean something else, like the sink, tub, or counter.

Instead of cleaning, they were actually spreading the crappy bacteria around. The Germinator thinks that this is why single men’s homes had the fewest germs.

They didn’t clean often, so they didn’t spread the crud around. That’s one way to win the war on germs.

The other way to win is by following The

Germinator’s battle plan: use paper towels and a disinfectant that kills both viruses and bacteria. Clean the least contaminated area first, and work up to the dirtiest jobs. Swab the poop deck, meaning the toilet, last. Toss the germy paper towel into the recycle bin.

Congratulations. You’ve temporarily won the war on germs.

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What Goes in the Wash . . .

Once upon a time it took all day to do the laundry.

Q

Clothes were scrubbed with soap, boiled on the

stove, wrung out by hand, and then hung out on the line to dry. These days, it’s a lot less time consuming GERMyNA

if you let machines do the dirty work for you. You toss the clothes into the washing machine, add detergent, and it does its thing while you do something else.

TION:

Next comes the dryer, and it’s done, all except for the HOME

sorting and folding. The clothes that come out of the dryer sure do look fresh and smell clean, but are they INV

really? When The Germinator studied laundry . . .

ASION

What did he find?

a) Fecal bacteria can contaminate washing machines.

b) Sickening germs survive normal wash and dry cycles.

c) Underwear is the dirtiest of the dirty laundry.

d) all of the above

229

What Goes in the Wash . . .

What did he find?

A

a) Fecal bacteria can contaminate washing machines.

b) Sickening germs survive normal wash and dry cycles.

c) Underwear is the dirtiest of the dirty laundry.

GERMyNA

d) all of the above

TION:

CORRECT ANSWER:

HOME

d) all of the above

INV

What goes in the wash stays in the wash if you don’t ASION

kill them dead. Poopy bacteria can survive “normal”

laundering, meaning cold or warm water washes with detergent, followed by a half hour in the dryer. Even worse, the germs liberated from underwear by detergents can survive quite nicely in the washing

machine and contaminate all the loads that follow.

Gross. Underwear needs to be washed in a separate load, in hot water, with bleach, followed by at least 45

minutes in a hot dryer. Colour-safe bleach will decon-taminate coloured undies, but Dr. Gerba suggests using a bit more than the recommended amount.

Better safe than poopy.

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The 10 Most Contaminated Things

in Your Home

The Germinator tested 15 commonly used items or Q

areas in homes in his quest to locate crappy germs such as E. coli and salmonella. In kitchens, his search for pathogens included dishcloths or sponges, GERMyNA

sinks, sink faucet handles, counter tops, cutting boards, tables, and refrigerator handles. In bathrooms, he swabbed sinks and toilets. In the rest of TION:

the house, he tested floors and rugs, TV remotes, cell HOME

phones, the inside of washing machines, laundry hampers, and clothes. He found what he was looking INV

for, in more than one place.

ASION

Where did he find the most fecal bacteria?

a) cutting boards

b) dishrag or sponge

c) toilet seat

d) TV remote

231

The 10 Most Contaminated Things

in Your Home

Where did he find the most fecal bacteria?

A

a) cutting boards

b) dishrag or sponge

c) toilet seat

GERMyNA

d) TV remote

TION:

CORRECT ANSWER:

b) dishrag or sponge

HOME

Surprised? So was Dr. Gerba. Sixty percent of the INV

sponges harboured fecal bacteria and had, on average, ASION

a total bacterial count of about seven billion. That’s close to the number of people on the planet — living in a dish rag! And if that’s not gruesome enough, there were more fecal bacteria in the kitchens than in the toilets! More than half of the kitchen sinks were contaminated. They had more fecal bacteria than toilet seats, as did cutting boards (both wooden and plastic).

The least contaminated, at the very bottom of the list, were — surprise! — toilet seats. Just think, by disinfecting the kitchen regularly, you can make it as clean as your toilet seat.

The 10 Most Contaminated Things in Your Home

1. kitchen dishcloth or sponge

2. kitchen sink

3. bathroom sink

4. kitchen sink faucet handle

5. cutting boards

6. refrigerator handles

7. TV remote

8. cell phones

9. inside the washing machine

10. laundry hamper

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MMMM, MMMM!

Love at First Bite

You’ve been invited to a friend’s birthday party. You’re Q

starving when you arrive, and dinner is still hours away. But, luckily, hot, yummy hors d’oeuvres are going around. You see mini quiche tartlets, sausage rolls, and jumbo garlic shrimp. You grab one, and practically inhale it. Mmmm, mmmm!

After eating the first one, you feel . . .

a) a little less hungry, but ready for more

b) hungrier than before you started eating

c) one was just enough to satisfy your hunger

d) too full to eat another bite

233

Love at First Bite

After eating the first one, you feel . . .

A

a) a little less hungry, but ready for more

b) hungrier than before you started eating

c) one was just enough to satisfy your hunger

MMMM,

d) too full to eat another bite

MMMM!

CORRECT ANSWER:

b) hungrier than before you started eating

It’s counter-intuitive, but the aromas and initial bursts of flavour from that first yummy, little morsel make us even hungrier. But no problem, when you eat more appetizers, you eat less of the main course, right? Apparently not. In one experiment, people who were fed high-calorie soups before the main course consumed more calories during the main course than people who’d eaten low-calorie versions of the same soup. It would seem that when our appetite is turned on, we really go for the gusto.

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Wine with a Healthy Kick

You’ve heard that some of the compounds in wine are Q

good for you and may even help you live longer. Some compounds in wine, called procyanidins, are supposed to be good for your cardiovascular system and MMMM,

might increase your longevity. According to

researchers, you can receive the benefits from drink-MMMM!

ing just one glass of wine a day. But there’s a catch.

Procyanidins are only found in high amounts in certain wines. You check out the bottles set out on the bar.