MARK CAREY

As published on theglobeandmail.com:

SOCIAL STUDIES

A DAILY MISCELLANY OF INFORMATION BY MICHAEL KESTERTON
Friday, January 2, 2004 - Page A16

The latest insult?

"People were a little surprised when the human genome was sequenced and it only contained 35,000 genes, which is not all that different from a potato," says Dr. Eric Nestler, a neuroscientist at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas. "On top of that, we were a little insulted to be so close to a potato."

Source: The Dallas Morning News

What do women want?

"Few words are sexier to women than 'high thread count,' " reports Men's Health magazine. "Be sure to pay attention to the colour scheme in her bedroom, and pick up a new sheet set with a thread count of 300 or more, in Turkish or Egyptian cotton. Then make her bed with the new stuff. Trust us, you'll be spending much more time there now."

Most dangerous bird

The world's most dangerous bird is the southern cassowary, writes Edward Kanze in Bird Watcher's Digest. The bird, a native of Australia and New Guinea, "looks vaguely like an emu or ostrich, and if you catch it in the wrong mood, the cassowary could end your life." In 1995, 80 attacks on hikers and birdwatchers were reported in Queensland; none was fatal, but the risk is serious.

"An adult southern cassowary can stand six feet tall, weigh as much as Muhammad Ali in his prime, run 30 miles per hour, and disembowel a man, woman or child with a slash of one of its four- or five-inch stiletto-sharp middle toenails."

Mondo tattoos

"Just as getting tattoos was mega-popular in the 1990s, tattoo removal is the latest trend," reports The (Memphis, Tenn.) Commercial Appeal. "Studies show about 10 million people [in the United States] will have their tattoos removed this year, mostly through laser surgery. . . . Rule No. 1 when getting a tattoo removed: Splurge on an anesthesiologist. Rule No. 2: Never forget Rule No. 1." One man with facial tattoos told the newspaper that removal "hurts 10 times worse than getting a tattoo."

"Katie Yankura gets some weird stares from her classmates these days," says Knight Ridder News. "Everything about this freshman at Johnson & Wales University seems normal -- except, well, her forehead. Yankura works for Headvertise, a new marketing company that -- in one of the more distinctive advertising tricks to date -- pays college students to wear temporary, tattooed advertising messages on their foreheads. Yankura said the novel idea is turning heads on her Rhode Island campus. 'People come up to me all the time and ask about it,' Yankura said. 'Everyone is just amazed by it.' "

Sniff, sniff

A Belgian research organization in Tanzania has successfully used giant pouched rats (Cricetomys gambianus) to sniff out land mines, and the same rat researchers are now training them to detect tuberculosis in humans. New Scientist magazine reports that preliminary tests suggest the rats could test as many as 150 saliva samples in 30 minutes, compared to a human using a microscope, who can only test 20 samples in a day.

British government scientists are evaluating new technology that allows people to be identified by body odour, making the tracing of criminals by their unique whiff -- whether of fear, greed or excitement -- a possibility within years, says The London Observer. Another biometric identity system being evaluated is "skull resonance," in which sound waves are passed through a person's head to produce a unique sonar profile.

How to choose a cane

Tips from the Mayo Clinic:

The traditional candy-cane style with a curved handle can be difficult to grasp and may not be your best choice. Several handgrip styles and shapes are available.

Be sure to order the correct length of cane for your height. With shoes on, stand up straight, letting your arms hang at your sides. The top of the cane's handle should align with the crease of your wrist. When you hold the cane while standing still, your elbow should be flexed at a 30-degree angle.

Hold your cane in the hand opposite the side that needs support. The cane and your affected leg should swing and strike the ground together.

Disappearing forest

"The [Amazon] rainforest is shrinking at a rate that is staggering environmentalists," reports The Guardian. "Around 25,000 square kilometres (10,000 square miles) disappeared last year [2002] -- an area about the size of Belgium. Brazil's environment minister has confirmed to The Guardian that this year's figures will be as bad. Others think they will be worse. Huge swaths of the land are being transformed not only by illegal logging companies and cattle ranchers, but also by a newer invader, the soya bean."

Thought du jour

"The body of an athlete and the soul of a sage -- these are what we require to be happy." -- Voltaire