The Tonle Sap River in Cambodia flows north for almost half the year and then south for the rest of the year.

The Tonle Sap River in Cambodia flows north for almost half the year and then south for the rest of the year.

Monsoon rains fill the neighboring Mekong River with so much water that the Tonle Sap river is forced to flow backwards into the Tonle Sap Lake. The lake swells to 5 times its normal size, providing Cambodians with giant Mekong catfish for food.

Overfishing, and damming of the Mekong river may disrupt this important seasonal occurrence. Fishermen have been catching fewer and smaller fish in recent years, and Mekong catfish is now endangered.

Wood Frogs can be frozen solid and still be alive and moving when reheated. See Video

Wood Frogs can be frozen solid and still be alive and moving when reheated.

In the winter time these frogs become as hard as rocks, their brains shut down and their hearts stop beating. When winter ends, they thaw out and spring back to life.



You can also freeze and unfreeze them in a laboratory.
You can see for yourself in this video.

67% of the frog's body freezes hard but not inside the cells. As the frog slowly freezes over several hours, he pumps large amounts of glucose anti-freeze into his cells. Gradually he stops breathing, his heart stops, his brain activity ceases but his cells don't freeze. In short, Wood Frogs are the Han Solos of the animal kingdom.

Hummingbirds are the only birds that are able to fly backwards.

Hummingbirds are the only birds that are able to fly backwards.

They can also fly side to side, up and down, and hover in place like a helicopter. Rather than simply flapping their wings up and down like regular birds, who can only fly forwards, hummingbirds rotate their wings in circles or in figure-eights. They also fly at an average speed of 25-30 mph. To fly like this, hummingbirds have to move their wings much faster than other birds. They flap their wings anywhere between 12 to 90 times per second and their heart rate can reach as high as 1,260 beats per minute. 30% of a hummingbird's weight is its muscles for flight.

Hummingbirds are constantly eating in order move this fast, and at any given time they are hours away from starving to death. They have the highest metabolism of all animals (except for insects), and in a given day they may visit 1,000 flowers for nectar.

Hummingbirds don't really sing, like most birds do. The sound you're most likely to hear is a buzzing sound which, like a bumblebee, is the sound of their wings flapping.

In a strange coincidence, three U.S. Presidents died on the Fourth of July. Two of them died mere hours apart!

In a strange coincidence, three U.S. Presidents died on the Fourth of July. Two of them died mere hours apart!

John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, and James Monroe all died on July 4th. Adams and Jefferson, who both signed the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776 died on exactly the same day: July 4, 1826. Thomas Jefferson drafted the original Declaration of Independence which John Adams vigorously defended in the Continental Congress, so it was fitting that they both died on the fiftieth anniversary of when the Declaration was adopted.

Adams spent his last day celebrating the Fourth of July with a toast, "Independence Forever!" Not knowing that Jefferson had already died just hours before, Adams, on his death bed muttered "Thomas Jefferson lives" before he himself died.

President James Monroe died on July 4, 1831, exactly five years after Adams and Jefferson died.

There was once a 5-cent bill in circulation in America.

There was once a 5-cent bill in circulation in America.

North Carolina released a 5-cent bill in 1861 while a part of the Confederacy. In addition to being a small denomination, it was also only 3 inches wide.

True or false: It's impossible for an animal to be immune to cancer?

True or false: It's impossible for an animal to be immune to cancer?
False - Naked mole rats are! They have an additional gene to prevent cell growth.

In addition, naked mole rats cannot feel pain because they lack a neurotransmitter that other mammals have called Substance P that sends pain signals to the brain. They also are one of the only mammals known to be eusocial; they live underground in colonies with a queen like ants and bees. They mostly eat tubers (like potatoes) and their own feces, and they live very long lives for rodents (up to 28 years!)

The first product to have a bar code was Wrigley's gum.

The first product to have a bar code was Wrigley's gum.

Months that begin on a Sunday will always have a "Friday the 13th".

Months that begin on a Sunday will always have a "Friday the 13th".

The converse is also true: any month that has a Friday the 13th will begin on a Sunday. Furthermore, if February (in a non-leap year) starts with a Sunday, then February and March will both have a "Friday the 13th". The last time this happened was in 2009, an unlucky year for many people.