10 Amazing Volcano Lakes

This list will focus on any volcano made lake. Volcano lakes can occur in a few different ways: The first would simply be a crater filled with water. Another way that these lakes can form is that when a volcano erupts, such large amounts of magma are released that the emptied magma chamber beneath it collapses under the weight of the earth, thus forming a large indentation called a caldera, which eventually fills with water. All these lakes have an explosive past, a beautiful and majestic present, and a potentially devastating future. They each hold their own story.

10

Ijen Lake

Ijen Lake is a crater lake that is found in East Java, in Indonesia. It is situated in a group of stratovolcanoes, inside the Ijen Volcano. It is a 1km wide acid lake which has a beautiful turquoise color. This is also a site for sulphur mining, as there is an active vent at the one side of the lake, which continually brings sulphur to the surface, from where it is broken into pieces and carried out of the crater in baskets. The molten, red hot, sulphur is guided out of the vent through ceramic pipes, which deposits it on the floor, where it cools, turning into a bright yellow color.

9

Coatepeque Caldera

Coatepeque Caldera is a volcanic caldera in El Salvador. The Caldera was formed after a series of huge eruptions 72,000 and 54,000 years ago. Since those two large eruptive eras, cinder cones and volcanic domes have formed, as well as large areas of lava flow along the western edge of the caldera. On the eastern side of the caldera is a crater lake called Lake Coatepeque. This lake is about 26km2, making it one of the largest lakes in El Salvador, and it has hot springs all along its borders. In the lake there is an Island called Teopan, which was a sacred Mayan Site of importance.

8

Lake Towada

Lake Towada is the largest crater lake in Japan, and the 12th largest lake in Japan. It is located in an active volcano caldera, with the last big eruption dating back about 13,000 years. The lake is actually situated in a double caldera, as a smaller eruption caused another caldera under the lake to collapse about 5,400 years ago. The volcano’s eruptions stretch well into recorded history, and the last known eruption was about 1000 years ago, causing devastating ash and pyroclastic flows to retard crops, and lower the temperature considerably bringing with it a very cold winter and harsh famine.

7

Mount Katmai

Mount Katmai is a complex stratovolcano found on the Alaskan peninsula, in Southern Alaska. In the center there is a lake filled caldera, about 4km in diameter. The caldera was formed in the Novarupta eruption of 1912, and the caldera rim now reaches a maximum 6,716 feet. Little is known about the volcano before the huge eruptions in 1912, due to the uninhabitable aspect of the area, but some record was left by nearby villages, from the 1800s, that a volcano in the area would smoke on occasion.
The eruption in 1912, was one of the two largest eruptions that the 20th century ever saw (the other being Mt Pinatubo in 1991). The 60 hour long eruption actually took place about 6 miles away from the mountain, in an active vent. The eruption caused the caldera to fall exactly in the crater of the mountain, creating a crater caldera lake.

6

Laach Lake

Laach Lake, also known as Laacher See, is a caldera lake, about 9km in diameter and can be found in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, near the towns of Koblenz (24 km), Bonn (37 km), Andernach (8 km), and Mayen (11 km), and only 8km away from the river Rhine. The caldera was formed after the massive Laacher See eruption, which occurred about 12,900 years ago. Approximately 6km3 of magma was erupted, causing almost 16km3 of tephra to be blasted into the atmosphere. The eruption had a VEI of 6, the same VEI as the massive eruption of Mt Pinatubo in 1991, which blasted less than 10km3 of tephra out. The Laacher See eruption caused global cooling, and the tephra from the eruption can be found across Europe, with many unique minerals now being found in the area.

5

Lake Taupo

Lake Taupo is situated on the North Island of New Zealand, and is the largest lake in New Zealand. It has a surface area of about 616km2 and is believed to have been created around 26,500 years ago. The eruption is the largest known eruption in at least 69,000 years and it measured 8 on a VEI scale. It blasted an estimated 1170km3 of material into the atmosphere, which caused the large caldera to collapse and create the lake. It is believed to have erupted about 27 times after the initial event, and the last big eruption can be dated back to 180 CE, when 30km3 of materials was blasted out of the volcano within 5 minutes, in a VEI 7 eruption. The eruption column would have been twice as high as the one from the Mount St Helen eruption, and historical records from both China and Rome stated that the sky turned red. This volcano is currently considered dormant but will probably wake from its long slumber in a few hundred years.

4

Lake Toba

Lake Toba is a huge caldera lake found on Sumatra Island, in Indonesia. It is over 100km long and 30km wide, and is the largest lake in Indonesia, and the largest Volcano Lake in the world. It was created +/- 70,000 years ago when a massive super volcano erupted in the largest volcanic explosion in at least 25 million years. The eruption is believed to have had a VEI reading of 8, and it caused a global winter, in which most of the humans alive at the time died. This created a population bottleneck in Central Eastern Africa and in India, which has affected the genetic diversity of everyone on earth today.

3

Crater Lake

Crater Lake is a beautiful caldera lake found in South-central Oregon State, USA. It has a stunning deep blue color and brilliant water clarity, and forms the main feature in Crater Lake National Park. The lake has almost no signs of pollution, and is one of the purest bodies of water in the States, with a record clarity of 43.3 meters. The lake was formed about 7,700 years ago when volcano Mount Mazama, fell into the caldera beneath it. It is believed that the Native American Klamath tribe saw Mount Mazama fall and the formation of Crater Lake. Their legends and stories tell of a great battle between the sky god, Skell and Llao, the god of the underworld. The Mountain was destroyed during the battle and the lake was created. The Klamath people used the lake for vision quests, and the lake is still held in high spiritual regard by the tribe. The lake is also known for the “old man of the lake”, which is a full tree, now a stump, which has been bobbing around, vertically, in the lake for over a century. It has been very well preserved due the cold water inside the lake.

2

Heaven Lake

Heaven Lake is situated on the border between China and North Korea. The lake is situated inside a caldera and covers about 9.82 km². It is a stunningly beautiful lake that is typically covered in Ice from October to June. It is also the home of a legendary monster called the Lake Tianchi Monster. The first sighting came in 1903, and it was said that there was a buffalo like creature that attacked 3 people and then retreated back into the water, after being shot six times. In 1962, a man looking through his telescope reported that he saw two creatures chasing each other in the water, and hundreds of people confirmed the sighting on the same day. The description of the monster changed over the years, to a human like head on a 1.5 meter neck, with a white ring around the base of its neck and gray skin. In 2007, a reporter named Zhuo Yongsheng said he shot 20 minutes of video, showing six unidentified creatures swimming in the lake. He released still frames of the film, in which six messy creatures were swimming and interacting with each other. He said they swam around for almost 1 hour and a ½ before retreating under the water.

1

Lake Nyos

Lake Nyos is a 2km long crater lake located in the North Western part of Cameroon. The lake has a magma chamber beneath it, which constantly seeps Carbon dioxide into the lake, changing the water into carbonic acid. Over thousands of years of carbon dioxide seeping into the lake, it has become saturated with carbon dioxide, which had some devastating effects, on 2 August, 1986. A land slide caused the lake to release 1.6 million tons of carbon dioxide, which rose at about 100 km per hour and came spilling over the lip of the lake. The cloud suffocated over 1,700 people and 3,500 livestock which were in a 25km radius of the lake. This is the first known mass asphyxiation due to a natural event, and the lake was named the most dangerous lake by Guinness World records after the event. Scientists are still working at degassing the lake to render it safer.

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10 Most Spoken Languages

Language is perhaps the most important function of the human body – it allows us to get sustenance as a child, it allows us to get virtually anything we want as an adult, and it allows us many hours of entertainment through literature, radio, music, and films. This list (in order of least to most spoken) summarizes the most important languages in use today.

10

French

Number of speakers: 129 million
Often called the most romantic language in the world, French is spoken in tons of countries, including Belgium, Canada, Rwanda, Cameroon, and Haiti. Oh, and France too. We’re actually very lucky that French is so popular, because without it, we might have been stuck with Dutch Toast, Dutch Fries, and Dutch kissing (ew!).
To say “hello” in French, say “Bonjour” (bone-JOOR).

9

Malay-Indonesian

Number of speakers: 159 million
Malay-Indonesian is spoken – surprise – in Malaysia and Indonesia. Actually, we kinda fudged the numbers on this one because there are many dialects of Malay, the most popular of which is Indonesian. But they’re all pretty much based on the same root language, which makes it the ninth most-spoken in the world.
Indonesia is a fascinating place; a nation made up of over 15,000 islands it is the sixth most populated country in the world. Malaysia borders on two of the larger parts of Indonesia (including the island of Borneo), and is mostly known for its capital city of Kuala Lumpur.
To say “hello” in Indonesian, say “Selamat pagi” (se-LA-maht PA-gee).

8

Portuguese

Number of speakers: 191 million
Think of Portuguese as the little language that could. In the 12th Century, Portugal won its independence from Spain and expanded all over the world with the help of its famous explorers like Vasco da Gama and Prince Henry the Navigator. (Good thing Henry became a navigator . . . could you imagine if a guy named “Prince Henry the Navigator” became a florist?) Because Portugal got in so early on the exploring game, the language established itself all over the world, especially in Brazil (where it’s the national language), Macau, Angola, Venezuela, and Mozambique.
To say “hello” in Portuguese, say “Bom dia” (bohn DEE-ah).

7

Bengali

Number of speakers: 211 million
In Bangladesh, a country of 120+ million people, just about everybody speaks Bengali. And because Bangladesh is virtually surrounded by India (where the population is growing so fast, just breathing the air can get you pregnant), the number of Bengali speakers in the world is much higher than most people would expect.
To say “hello” in Bengali, say “Ei Je” (EYE-jay).

6

Arabic

Number of speakers: 246 million
Arabic, one of the world’s oldest languages, is spoken in the Middle East, with speakers found in countries such as Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iraq, Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, and Egypt. Furthermore, because Arabic is the language of the Koran, millions of Moslems in other countries speak Arabic as well. So many people have a working knowledge of Arabic, in fact, that in 1974 it was made the sixth official language of the United Nations.
To say “hello” in Arabic, say “Al salaam a’alaykum” (Ahl sah-LAHM ah ah-LAY-koom).

5

Russian

Number of speakers: 277 million
Mikhail Gorbachev, Boris Yeltsin, and Yakov Smirnoff are among the millions of Russian speakers out there. Sure, we used to think of them as our Commie enemies. Now we think of them as our Commie friends. One of the six languages in the UN, Russian is spoken not only in the Mother Country, but also in Belarus, Kazakhstan, and the U.S. (to name just a few places).
To say “hello” in Russian, say “Zdravstvuite” (ZDRAST-vet-yah).

4

Spanish

Number of speakers: 392 million
Aside from all of those kids who take it in high school, Spanish is spoken in just about every South American and Central American country, not to mention Spain, Cuba, and the U.S. There is a particular interest in Spanish in the U.S., as many English words are borrowed from the language, including: tornado, bonanza, patio, quesadilla, enchilada, and taco grande supreme.
To say “hello” in Spanish, say “Hola” (OH-la).

3

Hindustani

Number of speakers: 497 million
Hindustani is the primary language of India’s crowded population, and it encompasses a huge number of dialects (of which the most commonly spoken is Hindi). While many predict that the population of India will soon surpass that of China, the prominence of English in India prevents Hindustani from surpassing the most popular language in the world. If you’re interested in learning a little Hindi, there’s a very easy way: rent an Indian movie. The film industry in India is the most prolific in the world, making thousands of action/romance/musicals every year.
To say “hello” in Hindustani, say “Namaste” (Nah-MAH-stay).

2

English

Number of speakers: 508 million
While English doesn’t have the most speakers, it is the official language of more countries than any other language. Its speakers hail from all around the world, including New Zealand, the U.S., Australia, England, Zimbabwe, the Caribbean, Hong Kong, South Africa, and Canada. We’d tell you more about English, but you probably feel pretty comfortable with the language already. Let’s just move on to the most popular language in the world.
To say “hello” in English, say “What’s up, freak?” (watz-UP-freek).

1

Mandarin

Number of speakers: 1 billion+
Surprise, surprise, the most widely spoken language on the planet is based in the most populated country on the planet. Beating second-place English by a 2 to 1 ratio, but don’t let that lull you into thinking that Mandarin is easy to learn. Speaking Mandarin can be really tough, because each word can be pronounced in four ways (or “tones”), and a beginner will invariably have trouble distinguishing one tone from another. But if over a billion people could do it, so could you. Try saying hello!
To say “hello” in Mandarin, say “Ni hao” (Nee HaOW). (“Hao” is pronounced as one syllable, but the tone requires that you let your voice drop midway, and then raise it again at the end.)

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10 Crazy Olympic Mascots

It’s Olympic season, which means only one thing: people dressed up in funny outfits. And that’s not referring to the athletes themselves. Ever since the first official mascot was unveiled in 1972 (‘Waldi’ the dachshund for the Munich Olympics in Germany), mascots have become a fundamental part of the Olympics; a crowd-pandering means to celebrate the hosting nation’s rich, historically-based sense of tradition, as well that of the Olympic games themselves. While that all sounds properly-motivated, sometimes the products of such overbearing enthusiasm aren’t quite as pleasant as the sentiment. And thus, here are ten of the craziest Olympic mascots to date.

10

Schneeman the Snowman

When Innsbruck, Austria hosted the 1976 winter Olympics, they needed a mascot that best represented their country as well as the chilly-season games, so they went with a stubby sort of snowman – who wears a Tyrolean, cowboy-looking hat – named Schneeman. He is, after all, supposed to represent what was referred to as the ‘Games of Simplicity.’ While Scheenman may indeed be categorically a snowman, he looks a lot more like one of the M&Ms mascots, with his torso-head hybrid and molded shoes/gloves where twigs and a large ball of snow should be.

9

Hidy and Howdy

Named deliberately after folky sorts of greetings, these cowboy-dressed polar bears aimed to represent Western Canadian hospitality. Employed during the 1988 Calgary Olympics, these giant, furry bear suits came off less hospitable than they did just plain creepy, looking like cheap teddy bears with five o’clock shadows – creepier still knowing a grown (and likely sweaty) man was hiding inside.

8

Magique

The 1992 Winter Olympics in Albertville, France brought another weird winter symbol to the proverbial snow lodge via ‘Magique the snow imp,’ which was a part-man part-star hybrid, that sounds biochemically impossible. And for that reason, this mascot represents imagination, dreams, and the idea of ‘shooting for the stars’ – a sort of reminder that these games aren’t all about the scoreboards and rulebooks. Side note: Magique was opted for over a much more earthbound ‘Chamois the mountain goat.’

7

Hakon and Kristin

These Norwegian children served as dual mascots for the 1994 Winter Olympics in Lillehammer, Norway. While their innocence is implied – shown holding hands, smiling and waving – it is lost to a degree as they are also shown wearing traditional viking clothing; vikings, of course, renowned for their brutality and savagery (at least according to popular conception, and largely biased historical accounts). Topically Norwegian as it is, you’d think a more pleasant slice of history could be evoked.

6

Izzy

Izzy might as well have been a giant question mark. Izzy was first introduced at the end of the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, at the time going by the name “Whatizit.” Created by a design firm called DESIGNefx, the mascot was later modified into its final form – an oblong, amorphous, indefinite blue mess of thing with a face and tennis shoes – for the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia. Not reflective of any kind of U.S. nationalism or tradition, it was the first computer-designed mascot and likely meant to somehow represent the budding silicon age, although it look more like a melted computer mouse. Izzy has been the subject of T.V. specials and video games, all of which underscore the overall meaninglessness of the mascot.

5

Athena and Phevos

The 2004 Summer Olympics were the second official Olympic games held in Greece since the ancient games, held originally by the Greeks as a means to honor Zeus. This tradition of traditions had to be honored somehow, and the way they elected to do it through two children – named Athena and Phevos – who were supposed to be from present-day, but also fashioned after ancient Greek dolls (as a way to merge the ideals of antiquity and modernity). The result is a Erlenmeyer flask-looking pair, with disproportionately wide feet and long necks. Maybe children actually looked like this in ancients times… (unlikely).

4

Neve and Gliz

Cute as these mascots are – used in the 2006 Olympics in Turin, Italy – Neve and Gliz symbolized winter. And how simply: Neve (meaning ‘snow’ in Italian) was a man with a personified snowball for a head; Gliz (short for the Italian word meaning ‘ice’ – ‘ghiaccio’) was Neve’s ice cube-equivalent and counterpart. The two in the end looked something like the Blockheads from Gumby. Oh yeah, and the snowball is supposed to be a chick, while the ice cube is most definitely a dude.

3

The ‘Fuwa’

As if one mascot (or even two weren’t enough), here are five. Named Beibei, Jingjing, Huanhuan, Yingying, and Nini (in order) – and appearing during the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China – the names are arranged to form the Chinese phrase “Beijing huan ying ni” which means ‘Beijing welcomes you.’ As far as each personality goes – a fish, a panda, an Olympic flame, a Tibetan antelope, and a swallow – they represent each of the five Olympic rings, as well as the five Feng Shui elements.

2

Miga, Quatchi, Sumi, and Mukmuk

As Olympic mascots have started becoming more Yo Gabba Gabba!-like, these four (well, three and a ‘sidekick’) are no exception; created for the purposes of the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, British Columbia in Canada, they each represented mythical creatures appearing in Canadian and Northwestern U.S. urban legends (which makes sense seeing as how they were designed by a Canadian and an American pair, which comprises Meomi Design). Miga is a sea bear (Orca whale-kermode bear hybrid) that likes to surf and snowboard in the Vancouver region. Quatchi is a big-foot- or sasquatch-type character that carries a camera, likes to travel, and dreams of being a hockey goalie. Sumi, a ‘spirit animal’ with Thunderbird-wings and black bear-legs, is a nature-lover. Mukmuk is a friendly Marmot (a.k.a their under-developed side-kick), whose name comes from the Chinuk Wawa word which means ‘food’/’to eat,’ Mukmuk being typified by his large appetite.

1

Wenlock and Mandeville

This year’s mascot for the London 2012 olympic games boasts a certainty to be as head-scratching as tradition will allow. Named Wenlock and Mandeville (as tributes to the locations of the first two London-hosted Olympics), the two are characterized simply as ‘steel drops with cameras for eyes,’ symbolic of the Industrial Revolution in London (although the Terminator/T-1000 are evoked more effectively).

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10 Things You Didn't Know About Che Guevara

Che Guevara. He is loved and he is hated. He is one of the biggest commercial successes and one of the most brutal murderers in recent history. It is no wonder that a man so passionately loved and hated is familiar to most people. This list looks at some of the less familiar aspects of his life. If you have other little known facts about Che Guevara, be sure to tell us in the comments.

10

Not so Glamorous Name

The name “Che Guevara” either incites love or hate. The name is synonymous with freedom fighting to some, and butchery to others. What most people don’t know is that Che’s real name was not quite so romantic; he was born Ernesto Lynch. That’s right – Che Guevara was actually plain old Mr Lynch. It doesn’t have quite the same ring to it does it? His surname comes from the fact that his family was half Irish. Ernesto Lynch is pictured above at the age of 22.

9

Stinky Che

Che Guevara as a youth was nicknamed “Chancho” (pig) because of his bathing habits (or lack thereof) and the fact that he proudly wore a “weekly shirt” – ie, a shirt he changed once a week. All through his life people commented on his smelliness (though obviously not to his face once he had the power to execute people on a whim).

8

Ernesto The Geek

Contrary to the image we all have of Guevara, in his youth he was quite the geek. He loved playing Chess and even entered local tournaments. In between hanging out with his chess buddies, Ernesto would read poetry which he loved with a passion. His favorite subjects at school were mathematics and engineering. I think we could safely say that if he were a teenager today, he would be EMO. Pictured above is an artist’s impression of EMO Ernesto Lynch (AKA Che Guevara).

7

Cuban or not?

While Guevara is best remembered for his actions in Cuba, he was actually born in Argentina to wealthy parents and he never became a Cuban citizen. When he was born, his father said “the first thing to note is that in my son’s veins flowed the blood of the Irish rebels.”

6

Doctor of Medicine

There seems to be some dispute about this fact around the Internet, but in June 1953, Guevara completed his medical studies and graduated as Doctor Ernesto Guevara. While studying he was particularly interested in the disease Leprosy.

5

American Trip

In 1964, Guevara travelled to the United States to give a speech to the United Nations in New York. You can watch a portion of it in the video clip above. Whilst there he condemned the US for their racial segregation policies: “Those who kill their own children and discriminate daily against them because of the color of their skin; those who let the murderers of blacks remain free, protecting them, and furthermore punishing the black population because they demand their legitimate rights as free men — how can those who do this consider themselves guardians of freedom?”

4

Five Children

We tend not to see Guevara as a family man, but in fact he had one child with his first wife, Hilda Gadea, a daughter who was born in Mexico City on February 15, 1956, and he had four children with his second wife, the revolutionary Aleida March. Pictured above is Camilo – Che’s son.

3

No Hands

After hie execution, a military doctor amputated Che’s hands. Bolivian army officers transferred Guevara’s body to an undisclosed location and refused to reveal whether his remains had been buried or cremated. The hands were preserved in formaldehyde to be sent to Buenos Aires for fingerprint identification. (His fingerprints were on file with the Argentine police.) They were later sent to Cuba.

2

Ironic Icon

The high-contrast monochrome graphic of his face has become one of the world’s most universally merchandized and objectified images, found on an endless array of items, including t-shirts, hats, posters, tattoos, and even bikinis, ironically contributing to the consumer culture he despised. The original image was snapped at a memorial service by newspaper photographer Alberto Korda. At the time, only Korda thought highly of the shot, and hung the picture on his wall, where it stayed until an Italian journalist saw it, asked if he could have it, and Korda obliged.

1

Saint Ernesto

Guevara remains a beloved national hero to many in Cuba, where his image adorns the $3 Cuban Peso and school children begin each morning by pledging “We will be like Che.” In his native homeland of Argentina, where high schools bear his name, numerous Che museums dot the country, and in 2008 a 12 foot bronze statue of him was unveiled in his birth city of Rosario. Additionally, Guevara has been sanctified by some Bolivian farm workers as “Saint Ernesto”, to whom they pray for assistance. Needless to say, the Catholic Church does not consider Guevara to be a saint and strongly opposes the adulation of him.
source 

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10 Ridiculously Common Science Myths

There is nothing better than a bit of mythbusting (which accounts for the popularity of the television program of the same name), so here we are again, presenting you with a new list of terribly common misconceptions and myths – this time about science.

10

Evolutionary Improvements

The Myth: Evolution causes something to go from “lower” to “higher”
While it is a fact that natural selection weeds out unhealthy genes from the gene pool, there are many cases where an imperfect organism has survived. Some examples of this are fungi, sharks, crayfish, and mosses – these have all remained essentially the same over a great period of time. These organisms are all sufficiently adapted to their environment to survive without improvement.
Other taxa have changed a lot, but not necessarily for the better. Some creatures have had their environments changed and their adaptations may not be as well suited to their new situation. Fitness is linked to their environment, not to progress.

9

Humans Pop In Space

The Myth: When exposed to the vacuum of space, the human body pops
This myth is the result of science fiction movies which use it to add excitement or drama to the plot. In fact, a human can survive for 15 – 30 seconds in outer space as long as they breathe out before the exposure (this prevents the lungs from bursting and sending air into the bloodstream). After 15 or so seconds, the lack of oxygen causes unconsciousness which eventually leads to death by asphyxiation.

8

Brightest Star

The Myth: Polaris is the brightest star in the northern hemisphere night sky
Sirius is actually brighter with a magnitude of ?1.47 compared to Polaris’ 1.97 (the lower the number the brighter the star). The importance of Polaris is that its position in the sky marks North – and for that reason it is also called the “North Star”. Polaris is the brightest star in the constellation Ursa Minor and, interestingly, is only the current North Star as pole stars change over time because stars exhibit a slow continuous drift with respect to the Earth’s axis.

7

Five Second Rule

The Myth: Food that drops on the floor is safe to eat if you pick it up within five seconds
This is utter bunkum which should be obvious to most readers. If there are germs on the floor and the food lands on them, they will immediately stick to the food. Having said that, eating germs and dirt is not always a bad thing as it helps us to develop a robust immune system. I prefer to have a “how-tasty-is-it” rule: if it is something really tasty, it can sit there for ten minutes for all I care – I will still eat it.

6

Dark side of the Moon

The Myth: There is a dark side of the moon
Actually – every part of the moon is illuminated at sometime by the sun. This misconception has come about because there is a side of the moon which is never visible to the earth. This is due to tidal locking; this is due to the fact that Earth’s gravitational pull on the moon is so immense that it can only show one face to us. Wikipedia puts it rather smartly thus: “Tidal locking occurs when the gravitational gradient makes one side of an astronomical body always face another; for example, one side of the Earth’s Moon always faces the Earth. A tidally locked body takes just as long to rotate around its own axis as it does to revolve around its partner. This synchronous rotation causes one hemisphere constantly to face the partner body.”

5

Brain Cells

The Myth: Brain cells can’t regenerate – if you kill a brain cell, it is never replaced
The reason for this myth being so common is that it was believed and taught by the science community for a very long time. But in 1998, scientists at the Sweden and the Salk Institute in La Jolla, California discovered that brain cells in mature humans can regenerate. It had previously been long believed that complex brains would be severely disrupted by new cell growth, but the study found that the memory and learning center of the brain can create new cells – giving hope for an eventual cure for illnesses like Alzheimer’s.

4

Pennies from Heaven

The Myth: A penny dropped from a very high building can kill a pedestrian below
This myth is so common it has even become a bit of a cliche in movies. The idea is that if you drop a penny from the top of a tall building (such as the Empire State Building) – it will pick up enough speed to kill a person if it lands on them on the ground. But the fact is, the aerodynamics of a penny are not sufficient to make it dangerous. What would happen in reality is that the person who gets hit would feel a sting – but they would certainly survive the impact.

3

Friction Heat

The Myth: Meteors are heated by friction when entering the atmosphere
When a meteoroid enters the atmosphere of the earth (becoming a meteor), it is actually the speed compressing the air in front of the object that causes it to heat up. It is the pressure on the air that generates a heat intense enough to make the rock so hot that is glows brilliantly for our viewing pleasure (if we are lucky enough to be looking in the sky at the right time). We should also dispel the myth about meteors being hot when they hit the earth – becoming meteorites. Meteorites are almost always cold when they hit – and in fact they are often found covered in frost. This is because they are so cold from their journey through space that the entry heat is not sufficient to do more than burn off the outer layers.

2

Lightning

The Myth: Lightning never strikes the same place twice
Next time you see lightning strike and you consider running to the spot to protect yourself from the next bolt, remember this item! Lightning does strike the same place twice – in fact it is very common. Lightning obviously favors certain areas such as high trees or buildings. In a large field, the tallest object is likely to be struck multiple times until the lightning moves sufficiently far away to find a new target. The Empire State Building gets struck around 25 times a year.

1

Gravity in Space

The Myth: There is no gravity in space
In fact, there is gravity in space – a lot of it. The reason that astronauts appear to be weightless because they are orbiting the earth. They are falling towards the earth but moving sufficiently sideways to miss it. So they are basically always falling but never landing. Gravity exists in virtually all areas of space. When a shuttle reaches orbit height (around 250 miles above the earth), gravity is reduced by only 10%.
source 

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10 Powerful Animal Bites

Here is the list of the ten animals with the most powerful bites in the animal kingdom. There are animals which have been excluded who could probably make it here but there is a lack of research on their bite, since it is hard and expensive to measure. A notable exception will be the Great White Shark, but I was unable to find a number that was not theoretical. The Tasmanian devil seems to have the most powerful bite relative to its body size of any living animal tested, at 200 psi followed closely by the African Painted Dogs .

10

Lion

600 psi

A surprise placing for the “king of the jungle” (though it has never lived in a jungle). Lions are the only social cat in the world. They are so cooperative when they hunt that this might be one of the reasons they have a evolved to have the weakest bite of the genus Pathera or big cat. Another reason might be that their hunting habit, strangling its prey by biting its trachea, lacks the need of a strong bite. Lions hunt at any time but usually hunt for large prey at night. They also drink water daily if they can but can go five days without.

9

Tiger

1050 psi

The biggest species of the cat family, the tiger is a solitary hunter. They can reach 3.3 meters and weigh up to 300lbs. They stalk their prey and hunt at night. Like lions, they tend to bite the throat of their prey to cut the flow of air and blood to the animals head. They have a powerful bite, nearly twice that of the lion. There are more tigers in captivity than in the wild. They usually avoid humans but attacks on humans and cattle have been reported around the world.

8

Spotted Hyena

1100 psi

Most sources say the hyena bite is around 1100 psi, but Wikipedia says it is 11,400, however I couldn’t find any other sources which could corroborate this claim. Having said that, the hyena has one of the most powerful bites in the animal kingdom, having even been observed crushing giraffe bones. It is this scavenger behavior which is the most likely culprit for the hyena’s strong jaw. Since it needed a powerful jaw to get to the marrow inside the bones left by lions and other big predators.
Although they look like dogs the hyena is actually more closely related to cats, belonging to the suborder feliformia instead of the dog suborder caniformia. Hyenas have been observed killing dogs with a single bite to the neck. Contrary to popular belief, hyenas do hunt, and ironically lions often steal their food. Like the lion, they are highly social and cooperative animals.

7

Grizzly Bear

1200 psi

This North American subspecies of the brown bear is known for its incredible size and aggression. Despite their large size, the grizzly can run up to 56 km/h. Grizzlies mostly feed on berries and nuts but do hunt. In Yellowstone National Park they have been observed and filmed hunting wild game.
The grizzly is considered more aggressive than other bears. It is theorized that because of their size, grizzly bears are unable to climb trees so they have evolved this defense mechanism to ward off prey. It is probably this same evolutionary road which gave the bear its powerful jaws, helping it defend itself from wolves and other intruders. They can weigh from 600 to 1000 pounds. They can be a danger to humans if surprised or if with cubs, but very rarely, if ever, go after humans for food.

6

Gorilla

1300 psi

This one might surprise some because of their vegetarian nature. But the gorilla is a formidable candidate in this list. They have jaws primarily adapted to chew strong hard plants like bamboo, which have given them incredibly strong jaw and neck muscles capable of punching a 1300 psi bite.
The gorilla has been traditionally seen as a big scary monster but in recent years its image has changed to that of a “gentle giant.” They are our closest relatives after the chimpanzee, and their numbers are shrinking rapidly, with only 700 mountain gorillas left in the wild. Gorillas can climb trees but are usually found on the ground in communities of up to 30 individuals led by a dominant older male. Gorillas tend to be gentle creatures and do not pose a threat to humans.

5

Hippopotamus

1821 psi

This is one big powerful herbivore. The hippo is one of the most feared animals in Africa. Being highly territorial and aggressive, it has been known to knock over small boats and attack the crew. Only the female hippos bite force has been measured since the male was much too aggressive to test, but it measured at a whopping 1821 pounds per square inch. The word Hippopotamus comes from the Greek “water-horse” due to the hippo’s fondness for water. The hippo’s closest cousins are whales and cows. They belong to the order Artiodactyla which includes most hoofed animals, so camels, horses and goats are also related to hippos.

4

Jaguar

2000 psi

The jaguar has the strongest bite force of any cat, and by my findings, the strongest bite of any mammal. The real king of the jungle, the jaguar is found from Mexico to Argentina. The jaguar kills by biting the head of its prey. Like most other big cats (except the lion) the jaguar is a solitary killer. The jaguar is renowned to for its ability to successfully kill anacondas and caimans. Its bite is so strong it can easily pierce through the shell of animals, like turtles. The jaguar comes from the Amerindian word Yaguar which means “he who kills with one leap.” Despite being smaller than its cousins in Africa and Asia, it is still the biggest cat in the Americas.
Believed to have been eliminated from the southern United States over 100 years ago, there are rumors of a breeding population in Arizona. Jaguars are believed to be most numerous in Belize, specifically the jaguar sanctuary in Cockscomb Basin.

3

American Alligator

2125 psi

The American Alligator is one of only two species of Alligator left in the world, the other being the Chinese Alligator. With an estimated population of 5 million; 1.2 million live in the state of Florida. Its range includes: Florida, Texas, Louisiana, North and South Carolina, Georgia and Alabama. They share territory with the crocodile. Their diet consists mainly on fish turtles and small mammals. In a recent study by National Geographic, American Alligators tested at 2125 psi, yet they did not test the larger alligator, so this number could be higher. Yet this problem arises with the three members of the crocodilian superfamily mentioned here.

2

Saltwater Crocodile

3700 psi

Saltwater crocs (do you know the difference between a crocodile and an alligator?) tested the highest in the National Geographic experiment mentioned above with 3700 psi. Yet they only measured a few smaller crocs. National Geographic claims that if this number were to be translated to 20 footers (which do exist, in abundance) the number could be higher than 7,000 psi.
These monsters are found from eastern India to southeast Asia and northern Australia. Saltwater Crocs eat anything they can bite from water buffalo to fish and even sharks. They are affectionately referred to as “salties” by Australians, yet there is little to be affectionate about when it comes to this giant. They are responsible for more attacks on humans than any other croc but not much more than the next on this list.

1

Nile Crocodile

5000 psi

In the National Geographic experiment the Nile Croc actually tested lower than the Saltwater Croc, but most other sources have the Nile Croc at 5000 psi. Nile Crocs tend to be about the same size as Saltwater Crocs and thus their bite seems to be at the same range. The two are interchangeable when it comes to the placing on this list and the numbers will vary due to the difficulty in measuring the bites of each and getting the right sized croc to measure.
Nile crocs eat mainly fish but like their cousins, they will attack anything dumb enough to cross its path. This includes zebras, birds and even small hippos.


note : Psi is Pounds Per Square Inch ,5000 Psi  = 34 473 786.5 Pascal
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