Dogs bury bones, cats bury poop. Hiding waste is a natural feline instinct , but it’s not just because cats are obsessed with cleanliness.
The act of meticulously burying their waste stems from cats’ long history of using urine and feces to mark their territory. Cat poop may all smell the same to us, but cats can tell their waste apart from another’s thanks to unique chemical scent markers called pheromones, which are present in their urine and feces.
In the wild, dominant cats including those of the Panthera genus, such as lions, tigers , leopards and jaguars that are competing for territory often do not bury their excrement as a way of signaling that they want to claim a particular area. Smaller, weaker or more submissive wild cats bury their feces as a way of ensuring that dominant cats do not feel challenged.
Wild cats will also hide their waste to avoid attracting unwanted attention from predators to themselves or their nest of kittens . Domesticated indoor cats (Felis catus) harbor the same strong, self-protecting instincts. Even though there are no predators in your home, your cat may not be so sure, and will bury its waste just in case.
Your cat’s careful burying habits are also Fluffy’s way of saying that she recognizes you as the dominant “cat” of the house.
“In an undisturbed home, all domestic cats see themselves as subordinates of their human owners, so under normal circumstances, all domestic cats use litter trays or bury their feces in the garden,” zoologist and ethologist Desmond Morris writes in his book, “Catlore.”
One reason that your cat might choose not to use the litter box may be that they consider themselves to be dominant over you. This is not always the case, however, as this seemingly rebellious behavior can also be caused by an illness, urinary tract infection, stomach problems or simply a lack of training in how to properly use a litter box. A cat’s natural burying instinct is reinforced by watching their mothers perform the task, so some kittens may need to be taught how to use a litter box.
Cats aren’t the only ones who bury their waste to throw off predators and settle territory disputes armadillos, woodchucks, minks and some other weasels are also known to cover their excrement.
Our species, an interesting tool and product of evolution, is very persistent in moving its invasive attitude out of the planet. One of the exciting examples of this is the Mars One project, in which this Dutch-based group is systematically and periodically planning to make the red planet a new human home by sending Homo sapiens species and the tools they need to Mars.
But of course our article is not about that. Considering the many journeys that will be part of this project and can be experienced in the many journeys that come after them, at some point one can be accidentally thrown from a shuttle into space, without protective gear.
Well, what happens to this friend, who is the focus of our topic, after he moves away from the safe environment of the shuttle?
Boiling of Saliva in the Mouth and Blood in the Veins
Unfortunately, he won’t be enjoying it while the vast dark void surrounds this friend. The first thing that will happen to anyone thrown into the void is pressure relief, which Hollywood tried (but failed) to enlighten us a little bit about what that would be like. Everyone who has watched The Recall (1990) movie remembers how Arnold fell off the slopes of Mars and his eyes exploded when he was subjected to low pressure. Of course, this is an exaggerated scenario, eyes exposed to low pressure do not pop out or burst. However, according to “Boyle’s Law”, which will be remembered by those who do not sleep in chemistry class, there is a relationship between the boiling point of a liquid and its pressure and volume. At lower pressure liquids boil at lower temperatures. The unfortunate friend’s saliva floating in the vacuum of space will boil in his mouth instantly, but considering that this is pressure-induced rather than temperature-based, there is no question of a burn. The decrease in pressure will affect the blood as well and the blood will begin to boil in the vessels until a balance is reached.
Lungs Cease to Be Unusable
Our breathing is again dependent on the atmosphere outside of our body and therefore on the pressure. If our unfortunate nameless friend, who is the subject of us, tries to hold his breath the moment he is thrown into the void, the gas he holds will put pressure on the walls of the lungs and cause tissue damage. So as soon as he falls into the void, he should give his last breath. This fact, which seems to be the last joke of a brutal writer to his character, is actually an important step towards survival. If a rescue happens, he’ll need his friend lungs, after all. If we add exhalation to protect the lungs to the boiling of the blood due to the low pressure, we face the problem of suffocation, which means that the friend who is floating in this space has only a few seconds to evaluate what happened to him and complain to himself that “I should stay away from that gate valve”.
Incontinence and Skin Swelling
In the unpressurized environment of space, our intestines tend to empty themselves, which means that our mannequin will contaminate the gold as soon as it floats through space. Maybe a closed consciousness isn’t such a bad thing.
Another effect that our friend floating in the void of space will encounter is the swelling of his skin. The gradual expansion of the skin due to lack of pressure is balanced at some point by surface tension and the swelling stops, but our friend has to wait for a while to regain its former beauty after being rescued.
How can we write a fly in space without mentioning the freezing phenomenon, right? Let’s apply to Hollywood again. Mission: In Mars (2000), Tim Robbins takes off his hood and freezes on the spot to save his friends, due to his situation and the heroic spirit he has. My brothers who have to go out on snowy winter days and whose nose is frozen because of this, I am sorry to say that this is also a lie. When we go out in winter, we feel cold because we are surrounded by tiny molecules that transmit heat from our bodies. However, there are no molecules to do this in outer space, and blackbody radiation remains the only source of heat loss. Those who are wondering can ask for help from Google, but let’s just say that it takes a lot of time to freeze in this way, considering that you will struggle and generate heat through muscle, freezing is not a problem.
The good news is that if you ever find yourself in the vacuum of space for a moment and help reaches you within a few minutes, you will most likely survive. When we look at NASA’s work using vacuum, we see that it is very possible to survive an exposure under 3 minutes.
Every year in August, the sky is filled with remnants of small comets, what we call the Perseid meteor shower at night. Shiny Perseids, parts of the Swift-Tuttle comet, are one of the most popular meteor showers of the year.
Comet Swift-Tuttle, whose core is about 26 kilometers wide, is the largest known object that has passed through Earth’s orbit over and over again (read our article here to find out what comets are). The comet, which last passed Earth during its rotation around the Sun in 1992, will make its next visit in 2126. But it will not be forgotten until the next visit; Because, as the Earth passes through the dust and particles left behind by the comet every year, the visual feast called Perseid Meteor Shower emerges.
When you sit back to watch a meteor shower, you see the remnants of the comet warming up as it enters the atmosphere, bursting with a bright burst of light, and tracing a bright path across the sky as it travels at 59 km per second (212,400 km / h). Pieces of debris in space are called “meteoroids”. Meteroids are called “meteorites” when they reach the Earth’s atmosphere. If a meteor fragment passes through the atmosphere and falls to Earth without being completely burned, it gets the name “meteorite”. Most meteorites in the Perseids are too small to be a meteorite. Each one is about the size of a grain of sand; so don’t expect a meteorite to fall on your head during this rain.
Recommendations for Those Who Want to Observe the Perseid Meteor Shower The best advice we can give for the best observation of the Perseid Meteor Shower, although obviously, is to go to the darkest place possible in your city and lean as far back as possible (for example, you can lie on the ground or on your vehicle) to look directly at the sky.
A sky observer can observe about 60 Perseid meteors per hour with the naked eye, depending on the amount of light pollution at their location. In years when the moonlight is not very bright, it may be possible to see more and more meteors. In busy years like 2016, this rate may even reach 150-200 meteors per hour! However, if the Perseid rain coincides with the full moon, as in 2019, it may not be possible to see an interesting level of meteors due to the brightness of the Moon. With the full moon illuminating the sky most of the night in 2019, sky watchers reported seeing only 10-15 meteors per hour during that year’s peak of meteor shower.
You can best observe the Perseid Meteor Shower in the Northern Hemisphere and mid-south latitudes. To catch the show, all you need is the dark, comfortable place to sit, and a little patience: go to a dark area in the suburbs or countryside and get ready to sit outside for a few hours. You can also consider camping to see the Perseid Meteor Shower; If you’re going to do this, don’t forget to buy something to sit comfortably on, bring snacks and water with you to be prepared for long hours of observation, and above all, carry pesticides. After getting everything ready, relax and look up to enjoy the sky show.
It will take about 30 minutes for your eyes to get used to the dark. The longer you wait outside, the more meteors you will see. For example, the rate of 60-70 meteors per hour means that you can observe about 1 meteor per minute, including those that emerge as bright fireballs and those that can be observed as faint lines. Therefore, you should not expect meteors to fly over your head every second.
But we can also provide more technical advice: As the Earth rotates around the Sun, the side facing its orbit around the Sun tends to collect more space debris. This part of the sky would be right up at dawn. For this reason, Perseids and other meteor showers (and also random shooting stars in general) are best observed during pre-dawn hours. That’s why the best time to look for meteors in the sky is pre-dawn.
Outside of the peak period of meteorites, you may also see a few meteors between midnight and dawn the previous or next week, according to NASA; So you do not necessarily have to observe the sky on the busiest days: When approaching the peak of the meteor shower, naturally, you will be able to see the largest number of meteors in the shortest time. You can still enjoy the famous meteor shower before or after this point.
If you are in the northern hemisphere, look up and north to see meteorites. Those in southern latitudes may look northeast to see more meteors. Skywatchers watching the Perseid Meteor Shower can sometimes see other meteors breaking off from the Delta Aquariid meteor shower and entering our orbit.
A puppy in Oklahoma is defying the odds at just one week old, according to an Oklahoma veterinary hospital. Not only was Skipper born during last week’s record-breaking winter storm, but she was also born with extraordinary characteristics: Two tails and six legs.
“This is a miracle named Skipper,” Neel Veterinary Hospital wrote on Facebook. “Literally.”
Neel Veterinary Hospital
The extra appendages are the result of two intertwining congenital birth defects, according to the Neel Veterinary Hospital, which has been caring for Skipper. According to the hospital, Skipper has monocephalus dipygus and monocephalus rachipagus dibrachius tetrapus, which results in her having a single head and chest cavity, but two pelvic regions, two lower urinary tracts, two reproductive systems, two tails and six legs. The defects, according to the hospital, may be the result of a twin that failed to separate while in utero.
The veterinarians said they suspect Skipper also has spina bifida, and said she may need physical therapy and mobility assistance as she ages.
Despite these challenges, the Veterinary Hospital says she is still acting much like a typical dog.
“Her organs appear to be in great shape, she is peeing and pooping, and is very strong!” the hospital wrote. “She nurses well and is growing appropriately so far. All of her legs move and respond to stimulus just like a normal puppy.”
Skipper the “miracle” puppy feeds from a bottle at home. -SKIPPER’S FAMILY
The hospital said Skipper’s life may be historic, writing that it believes she has lived longer than any other canine that has been born with her combination of congenital conditions. While there have been other dogs born with six legs and other physical abnormalities, there does not appear to be any instances of dogs with monocephalus dipygus and monocephalus rachipagus dibrachius tetrapus being born alive.
According to a Facebook page named “Skipper’s Journey,” the Aussie and Collie mix is “doing great” and has been crawling around her owners’ home. She was born in a litter of eight other puppies — and none of the others seem to have any abnormalities, the owners said. The owners told CBS News the puppy is “thriving.”
Skipper’s owners told CBS News that Skipper’s mother rejected her when she was born, and that they took her in the next day. Since then, they said, it’s been a “rollercoaster of emotions.”
“We were definitely not expecting [her conditions],” they told CBS News. “We just want her to be happy and healthy.”
Skipper is currently trying to open her eyes and ears and is also learning how to walk better and climb over obstacles, her family said.
“She is thriving and learning quickly…” the family said. “She is doing great.”
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