If your work requires that you be on your feet all day long, your backbone spring is jammed together and you shrink as much as one inch during the day. But don't let that worry you because a good night's rest puts you back to your normal height. Just think what would happen to our postmen, policemen, and other men who stand all day if Nature had forgotten to "stretch" us out at night!
OUR delving into "odd" fact sources brings this tasty tidbit to light.
The dassie or coney is the closest living relative of the elephant regardless of the fact that it is only the size of a rabbit! It looks like a rodent, but the structure of its anatomy proves that it is a relative of the rhinoceros and horse, in addition to the elephant. The home of the dassie is Africa.
Its relationship to the elephant is proved by its internal characters and its foot structure, while its molar teeth closely resemble those of the rhinoceros. All of these animals belong to the class known as hoofed mammals.
ONE of the most disagreeable tasks around the house is to keep the silverware polished and free from tarnish.
Now comes the news that a patent has been issued to James Ryder, who claims that he can produce tarnish free silverware. His process involves giving the silverware a "bath" in a solution of silver chloride, compounds of tin and uranium, and some non-metallic substances. The electroplating is so enduring and brilliant that the silverware need not be polished nor will it tarnish when it comes in contact with foods containing sulfur.
Sometimes we wonder how many of our writers use these little facts we dig up as basic material for their stories? The above reminds of the stunt Nelson Bond recently pulled in his Lancelot Biggs story. If so, we're just reversing the process this time. But seriously, we wonder how many of our readers could suggest plots, ideas for stories, from the bits we present here. Anybody got any ideas? We'll pass 'em on to writers, if you have.
THE oyster just can't seem to make up its mind as to whether it wants to be a male or a female. Being able to change its sex, it changes from male to female from one year to another. The first year of life is usually spent as a male, but in the second year about fifty percent become females. Some continue these sex reversals for many years.
FIFTY-FIVE children between the ages of ten and twelve years unknowingly served as guinea pigs during tests conducted by the Department of Agriculture to determine ways of getting children to drink more milk.
Each morning a child was given a glass of milk and told to drink only as much as he wanted to. Each day the glass of milk was different. The variety was made up of plain milk, colored but unflavored milk, colored and sweetened milk, and milk flavored and colored with berry and fruit juices. The amount of milk left in the glass was measured each day and after the test was completed the favorite milk was found to be the milk mixed with berry or fruit juices. They only left 10.3 per cent of this milk while leaving over 22 per cent, on the average, of all the other combinations as well as plain milk.
As for our children, we just tell 'em Adam Link brought it from Mars, and he drinks it to make him strong, and they swallow it!
THE Australian Museum at Sydney claims that the new bird-of-paradise species they have added to their collection has the longest tail for a bird of its size.
Some of the birds have tails as long as thirty-six inches, which is over four times as long as their body. Only the males possess such a long tail, which consists of two thin white plumes. In addition, the handsome male possesses a brown body and wings, with a metallic green throat and head. A large tuft of velvety feathers adorns the upper base of his bill.
The female, on the other hand, does not possess the long tail and is only a very plain brown in color.
This beautiful bird was named McNicholl's ribbon-tailed bird-of-paradise, in honor of Sir Walter McNichoil, administrator of New Guinea, where the bird was found.
(Continued on page 192)
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"Dope! I told you not to tip your hat!"
