According to research, the average attention span has shrunk by 12 minutes in the last decade. Human attention spans are now shorter than those of goldfish. Some research has even found a link between device multitasking — such as scrolling through social media while watching TV — and declining attention spans.

The Egyptians placed a high value on the afterlife. They thought that by mummifying a deceased person's corpse, their spirit would continue on in the afterlife for all eternity.

If you like crunching ice after finishing your Coke, you may be anaemic. The persistent chewing of ice, also known as "pagophagia," may be more than simply a nervous tick, but a technique of cooling inflammation in the mouth caused by a shortage of iron. So, if you enjoy nibbling on those cubes, get yourself to a doctor as soon as possible.

Psychologists have examined a phenomena known as reactance, which states that when individuals think that particular liberties are being taken away, they not only break the law, but break it significantly more than they would normally in order to reclaim their freedom. This might be one of the finest psychological facts to explain why a youngster who isn't allowed to use his phone in class will chew gum while texting.

Scientists can detect whether a gene has been effectively inserted into an animal's DNA by adding some type of clearly recognised marker to it. When testing an anti-FIV gene in 2011, scientists at the Mayo Clinic employed a fluorescent protein from a particular jellyfish. The tests were successful, however the cats did glow in the dark. In fact, these cats' offspring sparkle in the dark! Nonetheless, their accomplishment is only one step toward an ultimate solution for AIDS.

Those enormous Stetsons you associate with cowboys like John Wayne, Billy the Kid, and Wyatt Earp? Yeah. Those were not worn by cowboys. In reality, the headgear of choice for nineteenth-century cowboys was a bowler hat.

Dopamine, a neurotransmitter released during the beginning stage of a relationship, is also triggered when cocaine and nicotine are used. It provides the surge of pleasure and euphoria that makes those narcotics so addictive. It also increases the secretion of testosterone, which, as previously indicated, is necessary for attraction. If you were to choose between the three, we believe falling in love is the safer option.

Walter Arnold of the English town of Paddock Wood, Kent, was the first person to be charged for speeding, according to Guinness World Records. On January 28, 1896, Arnold was caught driving four times the speed limit in his 19th-century Benz—but because the speed limit at the time was only two miles per hour, he wasn't travelling too fast by today's standards. The officer had to track him down on his bike, issuing a £4 7s penalty and earning Arnold the swift distinction.

Ancient Egyptians regarded cats to be sacred creatures. Most households are said to have kept a cat as a pet because they felt it would bring them good luck!

The "Pygmalion effect" or "Rosenthal effect" refers to the phenomenon that higher expectations can increase performance. Professor Robert Rosenthal was the first to demonstrate it. In a California elementary school, he conducted an experiment and discovered that when teachers are made aware of students who have a high chance of success, their expectations rise. As a result, they paid special attention to those students and sometimes treated them differently. Essentially, the teachers subconsciously acted differently toward those students, which promotes their success. This has a positive impact on the student, and their performance improves as a result.

Komorebi, for example, means "sunshine flowing through leaves." It's an odd term, but if you start learning Japanese, you'll discover many more. Furthermore, the harshest curses in Japanese are "fool" and "idiot." Another fascinating aspect is slang. For example, "gaijin" means "foreigner," "baka" means "fool," and "baka-gaijin" is slang for "American."

When explaining behaviour, we often attribute positive outcomes to internal factors and negative outcomes to external forces. When it comes to other people's actions, however, we usually attribute them to internal characteristics. For example, if we receive a poor grade on a paper, it is the fault of the teacher; if a classmate receives a poor grade, it is because he did not study diligently enough. The actor-observer bias refers to this tendency.

Despite having one of Europe's oldest histories, Italy has only been a country since 1861. Italy was a unified entity throughout the Roman era. It was thereafter separated into independent states, which it remained until 1861. Because of this lengthy history of individualism, the country now has such a diverse spectrum of cultural variants.

Researchers at Arizona State University made the ground-breaking discovery that the ability to see red in all its glory is frequently gender-dependent. There is a gene that allows people to see and interpret red and its related colours such as cardinal, maroon, crimson, and so on, and that gene is linked to the x-chromosome. Because women are born with two x chromosomes, they have a better ability to see the entire red spectrum, whereas men, with a single x chromosome, aren't necessarily equipped to tell the difference between red and, say, cardinal.

Wilbur and Orville Wright, popularly known as the Wright Brothers, are famed for inventing the aeroplane, which may lead you to assume they were a well-educated couple, however none of them graduated from college. The discovery gained the brothers fame and money, and thankfully for them, they did not live to become one of those innovators who regretted their creations.

Fetuses with short protuberances have been observed as early as 16 weeks of gestation. While there haven't been enough studies to determine why this happens, some point to the age-old "use it or lose it" theory—the Los Angeles Times reported that periodic movements are required to keep the penile tissue oxygenated and healthy.

If you want to do something creative, such as write a short story or design a dress, do it after a long and stressful day. This is because studies have shown that when people's brains aren't functioning as well as they should, they become more creative. This is one of the main reasons why people frequently come up with brilliant ideas while taking a shower after a long day at work.

Ventriloquist dummies, like dolls, have become a staple of horror films. A ventriloquist's dummy named Slappy is one of R.L. Stine's most iconic antagonists. If they terrify you, avoid visiting the Ven Haven Museum near Fort Mitchell, Kentucky. Vintage ventriloquist dummies line the walls. This is undoubtedly your worst nightmare if you're afraid of dolls. How funny, these people should have destroyed them, but no, they thought why not show it to the world...

When people meet for the first time, colour recognition accounts for the vast majority of their first impressions. According to studies, those who consistently wear neutral or black make fewer positive first impressions, whereas those who wear brighter colours are more likely to form friendly bonds. Wearing hints of red (for women) or blue (for men) on a first date may result in stronger feelings and a definite second date, whereas those who wear black to a job interview are more likely to be hired.

You may have noticed that women take more risks than men, and there is a scientific reason for this. Women have a larger anterior cingulate cortex than men, which is the part of the brain that weighs options when making a decision. Some argue that this was evolution's way of making women better caregivers and saving the "tribe" when it came to gathering food and establishing social structures.

The ability to forget is a sign of high intelligence. According to scientists, forgetting is equally important as remembering. "Bad memory" is a mechanism in your brain that allows you to make more room in your brain for more relevant information. It also prevents your brain from squandering space and energy.

This curiosity has a social explanation rather than a scientific one. For centuries, society and the media have pushed women to hold themselves to a certain standard, whether it's small feet or a perky behind, and the majority of women have chosen stylish presentation over comfort.