Someone once said, “The world is not only stranger than we imagine, it is stranger than we can imagine.”
It is perhaps the greatest truth about the world we live in, because there are bizarre and stranger things in our world beyond common imagination. Here are some of the most bizarre facts about the world we live in, let’s see how many of them you already know:
#1. Diamonds rain on Jupiter and Saturn
Scientists have discovered that it rains diamonds on all the gaseous planets. Apart from Jupiter and Saturn, even Uranus and Neptune experience the diamond rain. Theory is that the methane gas gets turned into soot due to atmospheric lightning, and as the soot falls it gets compressed into graphite and then into tiny diamonds as it goes down and down.
In fact, the core of Jupiter is very likely a gigantic diamond the size of Earth!
#2. There are 5 colours of blood
Yes, there are five colours of blood: red, blue, green, yellow, and purple. Red blood is found in humans and most vertebrates. Blue blood is found in octopuses, squids, spiders etc. Worms like leeches have green blood, while yellow blood is found is beetles and sea cucumbers and such. Some marine worms also have purple blood.
#3. Zombie Spiders are real
There is a wasp in Costa Rica, which attacks spiders and paralyses them. After that, the wasp lays eggs in the spider’s abdomen. After two weeks, the larvae in the spider’s belly wake up and take over the spider’s brain. The zombie spider controlled by wasp larvae, then weaves a strange web. Later the larvae burst out of spider’s belly and make their own nest over the spider’s web.
#4. You can actually see monsters in mirrors
This phenomenon, called as the Troxler Effect, was discovered in 1804. It makes people think that they are seeing something horrific just on the edge of their vision, whenever they look into a mirror.
#5. A lizard squirts blood from its eye as self-defence
This horned lizard squirts blood from its eyes into the mouth of its predator. The blood tastes gross and looks disgusting, causing the predators to back off.
#6. Garlic actually attracts blood-sucking creatures
The myth of garlic being used to shoo away the blood-sucking vampires is not true at all. Vampires don’t exist, and garlic actually attracts other blood-sucking creatures.
Norwegian scientists did an experiment in 1994, that showed that leeches latch on a garlic smeared hand three times faster than a garlic-free hand.
#7. Crunching ice means you might have anemia
The desire to chomp on ice comes from iron deficiency. Lack of iron causes inflammation in mouth, and to cool that people crave ice. This instinct of eating ice is common in pregnant people since they usually have low levels of iron in their blood. Helpful hint: eat more iron-rich foods.
#8. Octopus has three hearts
Octopuses are perhaps the most mindblowing, unreal, and alien-like creatures on Earth. Nobody knows how they evolved, and their DNA is unlike any other animal. Octopuses have three hearts, two of which are just used to pump blood to the gills.
#9. High heels were originally designed for men
In the 16th century Europe, high heels were considered the symbol of virility and masculinity. Men wore high heels to increase their height as well.
#10. Men can get erections even after death
Also called as angel lust, post-death erection is a common phenomenon in people who have been executed.
#11. Australia is bigger than Pluto
Australia is almost twice as big when compared to Pluto. Pluto’s diameter is 2370 km while Australia measures nearly 4000 km across.
#12. A parasite that replaces the tongue of a fish with its own body
One of the creepiest and spookiest creatures, this parasite enters a fish through the gills and then cuts off the fish’s tongue. The parasite then takes place of the fish’s tongue and lives like this until the fish dies.
Featured Image Courtesy: Inggal
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