Our famed factoid page. *Information provided by the Pulse Rate is not static and therefore not intended to be an indisputable statement of fact, but it might help you win a bar bet.
The heart, the hardest working muscle in the human body, is estimated to produce between 1 and 5 continual watts of power.
The myth that spinach is extremely rich in iron is the result of a printing error. A table published in the late 19th century of food nutritional values put the decimal point of the figure indicating the iron content of spinach one position too far to the right.
One of the weirdest (but harmless) side effects of drugs, specifically antidiarrheal over-the-counter medications, is a black tongue. A compound in the medication containing the element bismuth reacts with the sulfur in saliva causing the discoloration.
One of the earliest versions of soccer was played in the Middle Ages and called “Mob Football.” It had the atmosphere of a riot at times and it is said that to move the ball toward the goal, any means, short of killing an opponent, were acceptable.
The rule in a raw food diet is that in preparing the food it cannot exceed 118 degrees Fahrenheit.
One of the less-known illegal performance-enhancing tactics is called “blood boosting.” The procedure: Removal and freezing of ones blood plasma around 2 months before the event, and then shortly before the event, thawing it and injecting it back into the plasma-replenished bloodstream, causing a surplus of red blood cells, which improves endurance.
More famous for his prodigious records in the Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest, Japan’s Takeru Kobayashi also holds the record for consumption of cow brains. He gulped down 17.7 lbs of the stuff in 15 minutes and 22 seconds. Must be an acquired taste.
The first precisely measured running tracks were created in 1850. Before this, records for the mile run were not accurately recorded. As for marathons, the standard distance of 26 miles, 385 yards wasn’t established until 1921.
In an improvement on the old food pyramid, the United States Department of Agriculture issued the MyPyramid in 2005. Instead of “servings” the recommended daily allowances are in cups and/or ounces.
Contrary to what is shown on TV medical dramas, defibrillators are only used for treating arrhythmias (irregular heartbeats) not stopped hearts.
A shobo is a tiny, sharp piece of wood worn on a ring and used by Japanese ninjas. It was (is?) used in hand-to-hand combat to jab at pressure points that cause extreme pain, paralysis or death in an opponent. Due to the secrecy common in ninja circles, it is not known who invented it and when.
Inuit will not eat the livers of seals or polar bears because they contain toxic levels of Vitamin A, which can cause madness before coma and death.
The world’s longest certified footrace is the Queens-based “Self-Transcendence 3100 Mile Race.” Eastern guru Sri Chinmoy founded it in 1985. Participants have 51 days to complete the 5,649 half-mile laps.
The circulatory system gets a lot of attention, but the lymphatic system is just as important. It delivers lymph, which is interstitial fluid or the fluid that bathes and surrounds our cells. Altogether, humans have around 2.4 gallons of lymph circulating in the body.