People have been found that have extra taste buds on their tongue. These people are called supertasters. There are five types of tastes that we can experience, they are bitter, umami, sour, sweet and salty. This ability was discovered bu a DuPont chemist ran who ran a taste test. What he found was that about 25% of the people tested were supertasters. One way you might be able to spot a supertaster is by his or her hate for certain foods such as cabbage, grapefruit juice and brussel sprouts.

Economists are reporting that there are benefits to rising fuel prices. One obvious benefit is that people are riding bikes more and walking and this is making them healthier. Urban sprawl is said to have stopped spreading, because people want to be nearer to their jobs, because it is too expensive for them to have to drive long distances. Another important thing is that pollution has gone down. With less cars on the road for shorter periods of time pumping out those exhaust gases, you can see why. Another factor is that obesity is on the decline. All the walking is taking it's toll on it. Lastly, there are fewer traffic deaths, which is always a good thing.

Healthy Reader has released a list of the twelve most contaminated fruits and vegetables. They state that it is based on over 100,000 recent U.S. Government tests. According to them, here is how the list reads: (It is not in any particular order) Peaches, celery, apples, sweet bell peppers, cherries, imported grapes, nectarines, pears, potatoes, raspberries, spinach and strawberries. They claim that every one of the previously mentioned fruits and vegetables showed at least a 59% contamination rate, with many being 90% and over. Even the potato, something that most of us eat almost all of the time, showed an alarming 79% contamination rate from pesticides. Wow, this certainly fits right in with the FDA (Food and Drug Administration)letting us down as usual. Healthy Reader also showed a list of the least contaminated food items, here is that list: Asparagus, avocados, bananas, broccoli, cauliflower, sweet corn, kiwi, mangoes, onions, papayas, pineapples and sweet pears. I hate to say it, but some of these items are not so easy to get, depending on where you live.

Did you know that some people have tried to start their own countries? The problem is that many of them are trying to start these new countries inside of already established countries, which is not looked upon kindly. The following are four areas that the inhabitants have called countries:
1. Freetown Christiania – The Danish government was not happy when some people took over an abandoned military base in 1971 and declared it a country.
2. The Republic of Molossia – This supposed country was established inside Nevada in 1977 and has colonies in California. Nevada states they are not a country.
3. Sealand – it is located six miles off the coast of England on an abandoned World War II sea fort. Here is the irony, they claim 12 miles in all directions as their territory, that would mean they own part of England.
4.The Aerican Empire - This is the strangest one, because they claim various territories, including some on other planets. We can laugh, but about 120 people claim citizenship.

The earth is an active place, there are about 30 volcanic eruptions under the sea every year. Everyone knows about the Nile River, but I wonder how many know that there is a river under it that is even bigger? A wind gust once reached over 222 miles per hour on Mount Washington in New Hampshire. One third of the world's electricity is used in the U.S. The Highlands of Scotland contain some of the oldest mountains in the world. The North Pole contains no land, just ice. Beavers in the U.S. were responsible for creating an artificial lake named Beaver Lake in Yellowstone Park. An underwater hotel exists off the coast of Florida. A fish called a notothenia has antifreeze in its blood.

The Rand Corporation has released a report that states that Al-Qaeda can be beaten by intelligence and policing to find it's leaders, rather than brute force. They even went so far as to suggest replacing the term “war on terror” with the term “counter terrorism”. Rand feels that Pakistan is under increasing pressure to do something about it's lawless border areas and the Corporation believes that the U.S. has the resources to beat Al-Qaeda, if it shifts it's priorities. The Rand Corporation is funded by the U.S. Government. The researchers studied 648 militant groups that existed between 1968 and 2006 and found that only 7% were definitely military groups.

A very strange behavior has been observed in cattle. I am surprised that no one noticed this before. The behavior has been confirmed by Google Earth. It seems that when animals graze, they all face the same way. Cattle seem to align their bodies in a north-south direction. The scientists who are now studying this feel that it might have something to do with the earth's magnetic field. The scientists have stated than since so many smaller animals use the magnetic field for things like navigation, they were wondering if larger animals also use it in some unknown manner? I would have to wonder if it has anything to do with the way grass grows?