• Achluophobia - Fear of darkness.
• Acrophobia - Fear of heights.
• Agliophobia - Fear of pain.
• Agoraphobia - Fear of open spaces or crowds.
• Aichmophobia - Fear of needles or pointed objects.
• Amaxophobia - Fear of riding in a car.
• Androphobia - Fear of men.
• Anginophobia - Fear of angina or choking.
• Anthrophobia - Fear of flowers.
• Anthropophobia - Fear of people or society.
• Aphenphosmphobia - Fear of being touched.
• Arachnophobia - Fear of spiders.
• Arithmophobia - Fear of numbers.
• Astraphobia - Fear of thunder and lightening.
• Ataxophobia - Fear of disorder or untidiness.
• Atelophobia - Fear of imperfection.
• Atychiphobia - Fear of failure.
• Autophobia - Fear of being alone.
• Angrophobia - Fear of anger or of becoming angry.
• Ankylophobia- Fear of immobility of a joint.
• Antlophobia- Fear of floods.
• Anuptaphobia- Fear of staying single.
• Apeirophobia- Fear of infinity.

• Bacteriophobia - Fear of bacteria.
• Barophobia - Fear of gravity.
• Bathmophobia - Fear of stairs or steep slopes.
• Batrachophobia - Fear of amphibians.
• Belonephobia - Fear of pins and needles.
• Bibliophobia - Fear of books.
• Botanophobia - Fear of plants.

• Cacophobia - Fear of ugliness.
• Catagelophobia - Fear of being ridiculed.
• Catoptrophobia - Fear of mirrors.
• Chionophobia - Fear of snow.
• Chromophobia - Fear of colors.
• Cnidophobia- Fear of stings.
• Cometophobia- Fear of comets.
• Coimetrophobia- Fear of cemeteries.
• Cathisophobia- Fear of sitting.
• Cremnophobia- Fear of precipices.
• Cryophobia- Fear of extreme cold, ice or frost.
• Chronomentrophobia - Fear of clocks.
• Claustrophobia - Fear of confined spaces.
• Coulrophobia - Fear of clowns.
• Cyberphobia - Fear of computers.
• Cynophobia - Fear of dogs.

• Dendrophobia - Fear of trees.
• Dentophobia - Fear of dentists.
• Domatophobia - Fear of houses.
• Dystychiphobia - Fear of accidents.
• Doraphobia- Fear of fur or skins of animals.
• Doxophobia- Fear of expressing opinions or of receiving praise.
• Dromophobia- Fear of crossing streets.
• Dutchphobia- Fear of the Dutch.
• Dysmorphophobia- Fear of deformity

• Ecophobia - Fear of the home.
• Elurophobia - Fear of cats.
• Entomophobia - Fear of insects.
• Ephebiphobia - Fear of teenagers.
• Equinophobia - Fear of horses.
• Ereuthrophobia- Fear of blushing.
• Emetophobia- Fear of vomiting.
• Enetophobia- Fear of pins.
• Enochlophobia- Fear of crowds.
• Ecclesiophobia- Fear of church.

• Febriphobia or Fibriphobia or Fibriophobia- Fear of fever.
• Felinophobia- Fear of cats. (Ailurophobia, Elurophobia, Galeophobia, Gatophobia)
• Francophobia- Fear of France or French culture.

• Gamophobia - Fear of marriage.
• Genuphobia - Fear of knees.
• Glossophobia - Fear of speaking in public.
• Gynophobia - Fear of women.
• Geliophobia - Fear of laughter.
• Geniophobia - Fear of chins.
• Genophobia - Fear of sex.
• Genuphobia - Fear of knees.
• Gymnophobia - Fear of nudity.

• Heliophobia - Fear of the sun.
• Hemophobia - Fear of blood.
• Herpetophobia - Fear of reptiles.
• Hippophobia - Fear of horses.
• Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia - Fear of long words.
• Hobophobia - Fear of bums or beggars.
• Hodophobia - Fear of road travel.
• Hormephobia - Fear of shock.
• Homichlophobia - Fear of fog.
• Homilophobia - Fear of sermons.
• Hominophobia - Fear of men.
• Hydrophobia - Fear of water.

• Iatrophobia - Fear of doctors.
• Insectophobia - Fear of insects.
• Ichthyophobia - Fear of fish.
• Ideophobia - Fear of ideas.
• Illyngophobia - Fear of vertigo or feeling dizzy when looking down.
• Iophobia - Fear of poison

• Japanophobia - Fear of Japanese.
• Judeophobia - Fear of Jews.

• Koinoniphobia - Fear of rooms.
• Katagelophobia - Fear of ridicule.
• Kathisophobia - Fear of sitting down.
• Kenophobia - Fear of voids or empty spaces.
• Kopophobia - Fear of fatigue.
• Koniophobia - Fear of dust. (Amathophobia)
• Kosmikophobia - Fear of cosmic phenomenon.
• Kymophobia - Fear of waves. (Cymophobia)
• Kynophobia - Fear of rabies.
• Kyphophobia - Fear of stooping

• Leukophobia - Fear of the color white.
• Lockiophobia - Fear of childbirth.
• Ligyrophobia - Fear of loud noises.
• Lilapsophobia - Fear of tornadoes and hurricanes.
• Limnophobia - Fear of lakes.
• Linonophobia - Fear of string.
• Liticaphobia - Fear of lawsuits.

• Mageirocophobia - Fear of cooking.
• Melanophobia - Fear of the color black.
• Microphobia - Fear of small things.
• Mysophobia - Fear of dirt and germs.
• Misophobia or Mysophobia - Fear of being contaminated with dirt or germs.
• Mnemophobia - Fear of memories.
• Molysmophobia or Molysomophobia - Fear of dirt or contamination.
• Monophobia - Fear of solitude or being alone.
• Monopathophobia - Fear of definite disease.
• Motorphobia - Fear of automobiles.
• Mottephobia - Fear of moths.
• Musophobia or Muriphobia - Fear of mice.

• Necrophobia - Fear of death or dead things.
• Noctiphobia - Fear of the night.
• Novercaphobia - Fear of your step-mother.
• Nucleomituphobia - Fear of nuclear weapons.
• Nudophobia - Fear of nudity.
• Numerophobia - Fear of numbers.
• Nephophobia - Fear of clouds.
• Nosocomephobia - Fear of hospitals.

• Obesophobia - Fear of gaining weight.
• Octophobia - Fear of the figure 8.
• Ombrophobia - Fear of rain.
• Oneirophobia- Fear of dreams.
• Oneirogmophobia- Fear of wet dreams.
• Onomatophobia- Fear of hearing a certain word or of names.
• Ophidiophobia - Fear of snakes.
• Ornithophobia - Fear of birds.
• Ochlophobia- Fear of crowds.
• Ochophobia- Fear of vehicles.

• Papyrophobia - Fear of paper.
• Pathophobia - Fear of disease.
• Pedophobia - Fear of children.
• Philophobia - Fear of love.
• Phobophobia - Fear of phobias.
• Podophobia - Fear of feet.
• Patroiophobia- Fear of heredity.
• Parturiphobia- Fear of childbirth.
• Porphyrophobia - Fear of the color purple.
• Pteridophobia - Fear of ferns.
• Pteromerhanophobia - Fear of flying.
• Pyrophobia - Fear of fire.

• Ranidaphobia- Fear of frogs.
• Rectophobia- Fear of rectum or rectal diseases.
• Rhypophobia- Fear of defecation.
• Rhytiphobia- Fear of getting wrinkles.
• Rupophobia- Fear of dirt.

• Scolionophobia - Fear of school.
• Selenophobia - Fear of the moon.
• Sociophobia - Fear of social evaluation.
• Somniphobia - Fear of sleep.
• Scotomaphobia- Fear of blindness in visual field.
• Scotophobia- Fear of darkness.
• Scriptophobia- Fear of writing in public.
• Selachophobia- Fear of sharks.
s

• Selaphobia- Fear of light flashes.
• Selenophobia- Fear of the moon.
• Seplophobia- Fear of decaying matter.
s

• Sesquipedalophobia- Fear of long words.
• Sexophobia- Fear of the opposite sex.
• Soteriophobia - Fear of dependence on others.
• Spacephobia- Fear of outer space.
• Spectrophobia- Fear of specters or ghosts.
• Spermatophobia - Fear of germs.
• Spheksophobia- Fear of wasps.
• Stasibasiphobia - Fear of standing or walking.
• Staurophobia- Fear of crosses or the crucifix.
• Stenophobia- Fear of narrow things or places.
• Stygiophobia - Fear of hell.
• Suriphobia- Fear of mice.
• Symbolophobia- Fear of symbolism.
• Symmetrophobia- Fear of symmetry.
• Syngenesophobia- Fear of relatives.

• Tachophobia - Fear of speed.
• Technophobia - Fear of technology.
• Tonitrophobia - Fear of thunder.
• Trypanophobia - Fear of injections.
• Taeniophobia or Teniophobia- Fear of tapeworms.
• Taphephobia Taphophobia- Fear of being buried alive or of cemeteries.
• Tapinophobia- Fear of being contagious.
• Taurophobia- Fear of bulls.
• Theatrophobia- Fear of theatres.
• Theologicophobia- Fear of theology.
• Theophobia- Fear of gods or religion.
• Thermophobia- Fear of heat.
• Tocophobia- Fear of pregnancy or childbirth.
• Tomophobia- Fear of surgical operations.
• Tuberculophobia- Fear of tuberculosis.
• Tyrannophobia- Fear of tyrants.

• Uranophobia or Ouranophobia- Fear of heaven.
• Urophobia- Fear of urine or urinating.

• Venustraphobia - Fear of beautiful women.
• Verminophobia - Fear of germs.
• Vaccinophobia- Fear of vaccination.
• Verbophobia- Fear of words.
• Vestiphobia- Fear of clothing.
• Virginitiphobia- Fear of rape.
• Vitricophobia- Fear of step-father.

• Wiccaphobia - Fear of witches and witchcraft.
• Walloonphobia- Fear of the Walloons.

• Xenophobia - Fear of strangers or foreigners.
• Xanthophobia- Fear of the color yellow or the word yellow.
• Xenoglossophobia- Fear of foreign languages.
• Xyrophobia-Fear of razors.
• Xerophobia- Fear of dryness.

• Zoophobia - Fear of animals.
• Zelophobia- Fear of jealousy.
• Zeusophobia- Fear of God or gods.
• Zemmiphobia- Fear of the great mole rat.

I’d like to talk to you about a man whom I’ve dubbed “Headset Vince”. He’s the guy from the ShamWowcommercials. He wears a headset for reasons no one other than Vince canunderstand… maybe he’s expecting a phone call? From his agent offeringhim a better gig? Maybe his mom is calling to tell him that Stella fromBingo saw him on the teevee? I don’t know. What I do know is that thisguy is someone who I, until now, felt the need to mock at any and everyconceivable opportunity.

Turnsout, Headset Vince is actually one of the good guys, a hero. We need tostop mocking him and start celebrating him. And we need to buy his towels and nut choppers and his DVDs.

Headset Vince is actually a guy named Vince Offer. It sounds like heshould be a cartoon bear-dog hybrid drawn onto the corners of couponsyou get in the mail, but he is not a cartoon. In real life, Vince wasan aspiring filmmaker - not a very good one, but his lack offilmwriting, directing, and acting skills were not about to hold himback from a career making talkies for the big screen. And yet, younotice I’m using the past tense. He was an aspiringfilmmaker… but now he wears a headset in TV commercials and makes youfeel like a dick for not already owning German-made spongetowels. Sowhat happened?

The Church of Scientology happened.

Vince is the writer/producer/director/star of the film Underground Comedy Movie.When he began making the movie, he was a relatively new convert to theScientology. He used his connections within the CoS’s “Celebrity CenterInternational”, a group within the church for artist networking, tocast his film. He managed to muscle up some big A-list names like Slashfrom Guns n Roses, Ant, a couple of budding soft-core porn stars andJoey Buttafucco. (Being new, I guess he didn’t have access to the XenuVIP Casting Suite where Travolta and Cruise hang out.)

The movie was intended to be hilarious and offensive. Unfortunatelyfor Vince, the CoS (along with pretty much everyone who’s ever loggedon to RottenTomatoes.com) only found it to be the latter. The CoS wasso embarrassed that one of their members made a movie so offensive (andawful), they went all 8th-grade popular girl on his ass - shaming,embarrassing and shunning him out of the cool clique of Scientology.

In a normal church your pastor or minister might pull you aside andsay, “I think we need to talk about the content of your film. I’m alittle concerned it’s not in line with the teachings of our faith. Ifear you’re violating [our religion]ism’s doctrine with some of thelanguage and imagery in your film.” And you may decide to chat about itor you may decide to spit in your pastor’s face and head downstairs forpancakes. Either way, the church is expected to act with some amount ofgrown-up non-dickery.

In the Church of Scientology, the MO is passive-aggression, threatsand coersion. Instead of taking the time to talk to Vince, and tellinghim that perhaps he needs to make a decision between the church and histerrible movie, they chose to push him out by turning the CoS communityagainst him.

Vince says CoS officials stole clips from unedited film footage,added their own sass and passed it around the community as the firstact in an elaborate smear campaign against him. They then coercedstatements from other members of the church, threatening to “fair game” anyone who refused, declaring them them to be SPs (Suppressive Person, an apostate and enemy of the CoS) for not cooperating.

Statements and evidence were “collected” and the CoS charged Vincewith 23 crimes against Scientology, and he was forced to stand trial inScientology Court. Which is kind of like Night Court, but without thehilarious bailiff, sexual innuendo, and the ability to walk awaywithout fearing for your life… oh yeah, and at least one of the judgesis still in junior high. Vince was found guilty on all charges without being able to mount adefense, mostly because he was never told what the charges were.

After being found guilty, Vince was considered a criminal. He wasstill “welcome” to be a member of the church - in the same way thatyou’re still “welcome” to have cake at your best friend’s wedding afteryou just mentioned in your drunken toast that you nailed the bride thenight before they got engaged.

Unfortunately for Vince, as is the case with cults, by this time hehad left behind his entire life for Scientology. Everyone in his lifewas a part of the Church. He was still in the process of making hismovie, and he was funding it through a business he started - a businessthat relied on his Scientology connections. He had dozens of sales repsworking for him, all of them Scientologists. His clients -Scientologists. His friends were Scientologists. He had nothing left.

He appealed his conviction, and CoS overturned it. They admittedthat the entire case against him was nothing more than a smear campaignand that it was unfair he was never informed of the charges againsthim. But it was too late. The damage was done, and while the convictionwas overturned, he never received an apology or reparations. In otherwords, they said, “Oh that conviction shouldn’t have happened. Wetotally lied about everything, used fake evidence against you andgenerally ran the proceedings in a manner that was the completeopposite of ethical. But we didn’t do anything wrong. We’re not sorry.And it’s not up to us to make amends to you. Quit crying and go takesome vitamins or something.”

Vince’s business was still bust. His friends were still gone. Hisnetwork was destroyed. He was still an outcast in his Church (though Ihave a feeling he wasn’t interetested in returning at this point). Hewas on his own and completely broke. He finally f0und a job, not agreat one, but a job nonetheless. He started selling vegetable choppers.

Turns out, he’s really good at selling vegetable choppers. He gotpromoted and started selling them at flea markets. He grew a sales teamunderneath him, and he eventually made enough money to finish his movieand put together an infomercial for it, released it on basic cable andDVD, selling over 100,000 copies.

And his unique sales style landed him Billy Mays’ job.

The next Deniro he’s not, but he’s certainly managed to turn thingsaround for himself. If only other cult refugees could do as well.

But Vince isn’t just accepting that this is what the universe hadplanned for him. He’s not just moving on and leaving the whole CoSugliness behind him. He’s fighting them. In fact, fighting the Churchof Scientology is his new life’s mission.

He filed suit against them in 2004 for ruining his movie, his life,his business, and being dickholes. I couldn’t find any information onthe outcome of this lawsuit, but according to ESPN,Vince is still fighting the good fight. And he is using every dime hemakes from selling ShamWows and SlapChop as well as all the proceedsfrom Underground Comedy to fight them.

Taking on Scientology is one of the bravest things a former membercan do. The Church doesn’t take kindly to dissent. Though they claimthat fair game is no longer a Scientologist policy, there are plenty ofstories to indicate that fair game is still alive and well, iftechnically “unofficial”.

My guess is that this probably is the last we’ll ever hear ofHeadset Vince’s fight against Scientology. But if I can drop $20 ontowels that could save me and my shag carpet in the event of a Frescatsunami, and at the same time help fund one guy’s shot at taking downthe bad guys, it’s worth it.

So go, right now, and buy your ShamWows. Get your SlapChop. Buy whatis arguably the worst movie ever made. Do it for the good guys. Do itfor the little guys. Do it for skepticism. Do it for Vince.

Anyone who knows me very well knows that Giraffes are my favorite animal. Here are some reasons why!

----------------------------------------------------

1. They're sassy

(Photo credit: zeandroid) 

2. They have mohawks without even trying

(Photo credit: Terry Longley)

3. They have whiskers

(Photo credit: wwarby) 

4. They always do their stretches

(Photo credit: Be11boy)

5. Knobbly knees

(Photo credit: Glitter & Grunge)

6. They're good at making friends

(Photo credit: no idea, but I'd love to know)

8. They love you.  And your food.

(Photo credit: guano) 

9. They're always willing to reach higher

(Photo credit: davidagalvan)

10. They're the only animals born with horns

(Photo credit: Timothy K. Hamilton) 

11. They begin life by dropping six feet to the ground

(Photo credit: BrianScott) 

12. Two words: prehensile tongues

(Photo credit: Source unknown, will credit if given info) 

13. Eyelashes

(Photo credit:  Terryfic5)

14. Leaf-shaped ears

(Photo credit: Ollie T.) 

15. Paintbrush tails

(Photo credit: cyberdees) 

16. They're very observant

(Photo credit: nyargle) 

17. They're great at keeping their balance

(Photo credit: ucumari) 

18. They have lots and lots of neck muscles

(Photo credit: silentcow) 

19. They're good at keeping the kids in line

(Photo credit: dospaz)  

20. They always have a smile

(Photo credit: rudezombie)

It took over six years but thanks to these two I can say with confidence that I've been to the grimiest bar in all of DC: Dan's Cafe.

The main seating consists of a long cafeteria style table in the middle of the room. Against the wall are old wooden booths that appear to be collapsing, along with a jukebox, pool table, and half-a-dozen fake ferns hanging from the ceiling. The only light comes from various beer novelty signs, making everyone—including the scary looking bartenders—extremely attractive.

At Dan's Cafe instead of ordering a drink, you pick a mini bottle of liquor hanging on a shelf towards the back. The "bartender" then opens the bottle and pours it into a glass. He gives you a bucket of ice, a mixer of your choice, an empty glass, and then tells you to sit your ass down and not cause any trouble. The only thing missing is a bulletproof shield around the cashier.

Since you are not paying for ambiance, the alcohol is priced with value in mind. My mini bottle of Absolut Citron cost $15. From that you can make 4 drinks, which at a yuppie bar would cost $32. Some of the cheaper bottles go for $10. I was severely inebriated within an hour.

No more worry about losing your virginity. With this product, you can have your first night back anytime. Insert this artificial hymen into your vagina carefully. It will expand a little and make you feel tight. When your lover penetrate, it will ooze out a liquid that look like blood not too much but just the right amount. Add in a few moans and groans, you will pass through undetectable. Its easy to use, clinically proven non-toxic to human and has no side effects, no pain to use and no allergic reaction.

Feature:

•   Easy to use
•   Place inside vagina 15-20 minutes before intercourse
•   Soluble and expandable at body heat
•   Clinically proven non-toxic to human
•   No side effects, no pain to use, no allergic reaction
•   Made in Japan

This item will be shipped from China

By JEFF HOUCK | The Tampa Tribune

Published: December 22, 2008

Well, well, well. Wasn't 2008 a newsy little year?

Believe it or not, stuff happened that had nothing to do with the presidential election, gas prices or Michael Phelps. Not that you'd have an easy time sifting through all the media debris to find the information that actually meant something.

With so many distractions, you probably didn't hear that using Facebook makes you a better employee, or that drinking wine can help you avoid lung cancer, or that doing tai chi makes life easier for asthmatics. (Unless you do it in a public park wearing something approximating pajamas, of course. Then you just look silly.)

For those and other warm, delicious infomuffins, we humbly present our list of stuff you know this year that you didn't know this time last year. Feel free to unleash these at your New Year's Eve party:

1. Dogs appear to experience jealousy and pride. Previously, only humans and chimpanzees were thought to suffer those emotions.

Read About It

* * * * *

2. Two pounds of a dried plant that turned out to be the oldest marijuana in the world was discovered in a 2,700-year-old grave in the excavated Yanghai Tombs in the Gobi Desert. The cannabis was found near the head of a blue-eyed, 45-year-old shaman among other objects intended for use in the afterlife.

Read About It

* * * * *

3. Starch grains embedded in plaque on the teeth of early Peruvians show they had a more varied diet than previously believed, including beans and a local fruit known as pacay that indicate they had settled into farming long before we thought they had.

Read About It

* * * * *

4. Scientists discovered a more efficient way to build synthetic genomes, which could lead to one day creating artificial life.

Read About It

* * * * *

5. Puerto Rican anole lizards perform push-ups and unfurl their dewlaps, the flaps of skin beneath their chins, to grab the attention of others when the forest is noisy.

Read About It

* * * * *

6. Stress causes human brain cells to either shrink or grow, leaving victims of serious stress with dramatic changes to their nervous systems.

Read About It

* * * * *

7. After a decade of increases, the number of mobile phones being shipped to market is shrinking. Consumers are sticking with their phones longer.

Read About It

* * * * *

8. Ground-penetrating radar used by the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter revealed enormous underground reservoirs of frozen water far from Mars' polar caps — glaciers up to a half-mile thick buried beneath rock and debris. Researchers said one glacier is three times the size of Los Angeles.

Read About It

* * * * *

9. Learning math triggers a large-scale reorganization of brain processes in order to understand written symbols for various quantities.

Read About It

* * * * *

10. The world's oceans are growing more acidic at an increasing rate, a phenomenon that may lead to major disruptions for corals, lobster, oysters, crabs, mussels and snails, which have difficulty building their calcium crusts in such conditions.

Read About It

* * * * *

11. Magnetic resonance imaging scans of blood flow in the human brain indicate that bullies often derive pleasure from watching others in pain.

Read About It

* * * * *

12. The use of social networking sites such as Facebook and MySpace on company computers leads to increased productivity.

Read About It

* * * * *

13. Children ages 5 to 11 who spend less time sleeping have a higher Body Mass Index and are more likely to be obese when they get older.

Read About It

* * * * *

14. Asthma sufferers may be able to better control their breathing and improve their exercise performance with training in tai chi.

Read About It

* * * * *

15. Hospital patients who receive a transfusion of stored blood aged 29 days or older face double the risk of developing one or more serious infections compared to those who get "fresher" blood.

Read About It

* * * * *

16. Exposure to light in grocery stores reduces the quality of cauliflower, broccoli, chard, leeks and asparagus.

Read About It

* * * * *

17. Scientists developed a method for reducing the amount of flatulence-causing carbohydrates in soybeans and soy yogurt while raising the levels of healthy antioxidants known as isoflavones.

Read About It

* * * * *

18. The virus that causes AIDS most likely emerged around 1908 near the African town then known as Léopoldville, now known as Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Read About It

* * * * *

19. People in a position to hire are biased against applicants with limp or wet handshakes, and interviewers often rate women who don't shake hands as firmly as men lower than their qualifications warrant.

Read About It

* * * * *

20. Searching online is better than reading books for increasing the brainpower of middle-aged and older adults.

Read About It

* * * * *

21. Drinking red wine, but not white wine, may reduce lung cancer risk, especially among current and ex-smokers

Read About It

* * * * *

22. One in 75 patients who gets a new knee or hip must get it replaced again within three years.

Read About It

* * * * *

23. Men who suffer from sleep apnea often have trouble getting sexually aroused because of oxygen deprivation experienced during episodes of obstructed breathing.

Read About It

* * * * *

24. Chemotherapy tends to be less effective for overweight patients with operable breast cancer than their normal-weight peers.

Read About It

* * * * *

25. More than 20 percent of U.S. Internet users are watching prime-time episodic content online, with half of that viewing serving as a replacement for watching the shows on TV.

Read About It

* * * * *

26. Girls and boys now perform equally on standardized high school mathematics tests across North America, ending a gender gap that lasted for decades.

Read About It

* * * * *

27. Delaying fatherhood can substantially increase the risk of fertility problems, with the chance of impregnation decreasing once the man is older than 35.

Read About It

* * * * *

28. Online videos get the majority of their views soon after they're posted. Of 10,916 videos with at least 1,000 views after 90 days, half of those views happened over the first two weeks.

Read About It

* * * * *

29. Excessive flip-flop wearing leads to a much higher risk of developing skin cancer on the feet. Only half of patients with foot melanomas survive.

Read About It

* * * * *

30. An ADHD-related gene may encourage behaviors beneficial for nomads.

Read About It

* * * * *

31. Taking a 10-minute online break during the course of the working day serves to reduce stress while sharpening and refocusing the mind.

Read About It

* * * * *

32. The likelihood an older person will enter a nursing home or other long-term care facility is particularly high immediately after the death of a spouse.

Read About It

* * * * *

33. Among kidney transplant recipients, depression doubles the risk of kidney failure, return to dialysis therapy, and death.

Read About It

* * * * *

34. Data on rainfall in the Mediterranean region from 200 B.C. to 1100 A.D. suggests that the decline of the Roman and Byzantine empires may have been partly caused by climate change.

Read About It

* * * * *

35. The fully fleshed-out head of a Tyrannosaurus rex may have weighed more than 1,100 pounds, but much of that volume came from air cavities that likely created painful sinus infections.

Read About It

* * * * *

36. An expedition 6,500-feet below the Atlantic Ocean caused one explorer to describe the region as "a new continent." Hundreds of rare and unknown species were discovered in the 1,500-mile-long Mid-Atlantic Ridge between Europe and America.

Read About It

* * * * *

37. Great white sharks travel long distances every winter to meet in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. During this gathering, they make dives to depths of 300 meters.

Read About It

* * * * *

38. Men with rounded faces, soft jaw lines, thin eyebrows, bright eyes, small nostrils, large mouths, thin lips, a warm, bright complexion and no facial hair are considered the most trustworthy, according to "modern-day facial stereotyping."

Read About It

* * * * *

39. Scientists found an assortment of 100-million-year-old, perfectly intact marine microorganisms trapped in tree resin in the Charente region of southwestern France. The discovery pushes back by at least 20 million years the period when a type of single-cell algae called diatoms are known to have appeared on earth.

Read About It

* * * * *

40. A newly found species of bacteria can grow at low temperatures, spoiling raw milk even when it's refrigerated.

Read About It

* * * * *

41. Killer whales off the coast of Vancouver Island know the precise sound of their favorite prey, Chinook salmon, and can identify the fish from more than 100 yards away.

Read About It

* * * * *

42. The Canadian Basin of the Arctic Ocean is a hotbed for tiny gelatinous zooplankton, including at least one new species of jelly fish.

Read About It

* * * * *

43. A stalagmite found in a cave in China reveals a nearly 2,000-year record of the annual Asian monsoon rainy season.

Read About It

* * * * *

44. Mexican scientists discovered a way to make diamonds from the carbon and organic compounds found in tequila.

Read About It

* * * * *

45. Rocks found in south China and quartz rock of south Australia show that an eight-armed creature lived in many of the world's oceans during the Ediacaran Period 635 to 541 million years ago — 300 million years before the first dinosaurs emerged.

Read About It

* * * * *

46. About every eight minutes, the magnetic fields of the sun and Earth briefly merge or reconnect, forming a portal through which particles can flow. The portal is in the form of a cylinder about as wide as Earth.

Read About It

* * * * *

47. Women who answer to another woman in the workplace feel significantly more stressed than those who have a male supervisor.

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48. Chimpanzees keep a mental record of helpful acts from other members of their group, such as grooming, scratching and removing fleas, so they can return the favor.

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49. When a leaf of a plant is attacked by a virus, fungi or other pathogen, the plant's roots can secrete an acid containing protective bacteria.

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50. Drinking just three cups of coffee a day can make women's breasts shrink.

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A UK-based study quizzed 200 students on their caffeine intake and found those with the highest consumption were also more prone to report seeing, or hearing, things that were not there.

Those who consumed a daily equivalent of seven cups of instant coffee or more - high caffeine users - were three times more likely to have extra-sensory experiences than low users, who had less than one cup daily.

The Durham University study took in all caffeine consumption including coffee but also tea, caffeinated energy drinks or chocolate bars and caffeine pills.

"This is a first step towards looking at the wider factors associated with hallucinations," said lead author, Simon Jones, a PhD student at the university's psychology department.

"Previous research has highlighted a number of important factors, such as childhood trauma, which may lead to clinically relevant hallucinations.

"Given the link between food and mood, and particularly between caffeine and the body's response to stress, it seems sensible to examine what a nutritional perspective may add."

When under stress, the body releases a stress hormone called cortisol. More of this stress hormone is released in response to stress when people have recently had caffeine.

It is this extra boost of cortisol which may link caffeine intake with an increased tendency to hallucinate, say the scientists.

"However, one interpretation may be that those students who were more prone to hallucinations used caffeine to help cope with their experiences," said study co-author Dr Charles Fernyhough.

"More work is needed to establish whether caffeine consumption, and nutrition in general, has an impact on those kinds of hallucination that cause distress."

People taking part in the study reported "seeing things that were not there, hearing voices, and sensing the presence of dead people".

Mr Jones said such hallucinations were not necessarily a sign of mental illness, and around three per cent of people regularly heard such voices.

Results of the study are published in the academic journal Personality and Individual Differences.