Fast Facts Answers to Outside the Box Puzzles from page 56 1. Low inflation 2. The night before last 3. Upsidedown 4. The last straw 5. Bedside manner 6. Arlo Guthrie Southward Bound Like Canadian snowbirds, monarch butterflies begin their annual migration south to winter in guaranteed sunshine and warmth. Here are some things to know about one of the most recognizable butterflies on the planet. ▶ Their scientific name is Danaus plexippus. ▶ Lifespan is six to eight months. ▶ Wingspan is 3.7 to 4.1 inches. ▶ They migrate 3,000 miles every year from southern Canada to Mexico and California. ▶ They travel as many as 100 miles a day. ▶ Their only host plant is milkweed. ▶ They can flap their wings 12 times per second ▶ During her lifetime, a female can lay up to 500 eggs on milkweed plants. ▶ They smell with their antennae. ▶ They retain the poison from the milkweed plant, thus protecting them from predators. ▶ According to folklore, an early migration is a sign of a hard winter ahead. ▶ They are herbivores, feeding on milkweed leaves and wild flowers. Mental Floss Your storehouse of knowledge will be greatly expanded by adding these random bits of trivia. ▶ The hashtag symbol is technically called an octothorpe. ▶ Although it’s a fabled creature, the unicorn is the national animal of Scotland. ▶ The British Crown Jewels contain the two biggest cut diamonds on Earth. ▶ You can hear a blue whale’s heartbeat from more than two miles away. ▶ A baby puffin is called a “puffling.” ▶ Elvis had 18 #1 hits, but only won three Grammys. ▶ The speed of a computer mouse is measured in “Mickeys.” ▶ About 700 grapes go into a single bottle of wine. ▶ A group of bunnies is called a “fluffle.” ▶ During World War II, a team of six women programmed the first digital computer. ▶ The moon has its own time zones. ▶ No real astronaut ever uttered, “Houston, we have a problem.” ▶ Facebook has more users than many major populations. ▶ The voices of Mickey and Minnie Mouse got married in real life. Believe it or Not We can be grateful that dentistry has come a long way over the centuries. Here are some ancient practices and beliefs that are hard to swallow, but historically documented. ▶ During the Middle Ages, some believed that kissing a donkey would take away tooth pain. ▶ Spitting into the mouth of a frog was once thought to be a toothache cure. ▶ In early times, it was believed that cavities were caused by a tooth worm. ▶ Wearing a necklace made of mole paws and noses was advocated for tooth pain relief. ▶ Americans in the 1800s bit snakes in an attempt to cure a toothache. ▶ Before the modern toothbrush, people either used a chewing stick or brushed their teeth with horse hairs. ▶ Ancient Egyptians scrubbed their teeth with a powder made from ox hooves and eggshells. ▶ During the Middle Ages, dogs’ teeth boiled in wine was a commonly used mouthwash. ▶ In 1498, the Emperor of China implanted hog bristles in a bone to use as a toothbrush. ▶ Blacksmiths and barbers once served as dentists. ▶ During medieval times, the Japanese considered having black teeth attractive, which led to some of the nation’s women staining their teeth with ink. Scary Stuff Studies and surveys have identified the various fears affecting humans. In no particular order, here are some that typically make the top 10 list. ▶ Claustrophobia: fear of enclosed spaces ▶ Acrophobia: fear of heights ▶ Aerophobia: fear of flying ▶ Ophidiophobia: fear of snakes ▶ Arachnophobia: fear of spiders ▶ Astraphobia: fear of storms ▶ Trypanophobia: fear of needles ▶ Nyctophobia: fear of the dark ▶ Agoraphobia: fear of open spaces or crowds ▶ Glossophobia: fear of speaking in public 62 | www.snowbirds.org
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