Nine science-y facts that can make you look super cool among your friends - Hindustan Times
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Nine science-y facts that can make you look super cool among your friends

Hindustan Times | By, New Delhi
Oct 02, 2016 11:44 AM IST

Unleash the nerd inside you and read up these amazing, mind blowing science facts, paradoxes, theories that we have listed for you. And to not make you seem like a big dork, we have also given you ideas on how to slip these facts into the conversation with a natural ease.

Man-buns, contouring are alright but even in this day and age, the sexiest thing a person can be is ‘smart’. And if you are not very cerebrally blessed, we’re here to help you out.

Unleash the nerd inside you and read up these amazing, mind blowing science facts, paradoxes, theories that we have listed for you. And to not make you seem like a big dork, we have also given you ideas on how to slip these facts into the conversation with a natural ease.(Shutterstock)
Unleash the nerd inside you and read up these amazing, mind blowing science facts, paradoxes, theories that we have listed for you. And to not make you seem like a big dork, we have also given you ideas on how to slip these facts into the conversation with a natural ease.(Shutterstock)

Parties and get togethers with friends can get really stressful. There is a constant pressure to get everyone’s attention to yourself which gets even worse if there is a hipster in the room with a guitar.

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But don’t worry! Unleash the nerd inside you and read up these amazing, mind blowing scientific facts, paradoxes, theories that we have listed for you. And to not make you seem like a big dork, we have also given you ideas on how to slip these facts into the conversation with a natural ease.

So get ready because you are about to become WAY smarter than you are right now in the next 10 minutes.

1. The Uncanny Valley

Remember watching the Polar Express and how incredibly creepy the animation looked? Did you ever wonder why? It was more defined and polished than any animated movie we had seen before then why did it leave us feeling uneasy? Because of something called the Uncanny Valley.

We found Wall-E, the robot, cute because of its human eyes and arms. The more a robot looks like a human, the more it appeals to you. However, do you find the following robot cute?

No, right? Thought so.
No, right? Thought so.

The above image is the closest a non-human thing has come to looking like a human and we still hate it. That happens because when something is this similar to humans, we only see the things that are not human about it, which leaves us feeling weird. Such things belong to the Uncanny Valley.

Watch this video for more:

How to bring it up:

‘That girl rejected me as if I am from the Uncanny Valley’

‘What’s the Uncanny Valley?’

Your cue!

2. Baby Schema

After learning why some things are creepy, here’s a reason why somethings are cute.

According to science, the reason why we find babies so cute is because of something called Baby Schema. Big foreheads, big eyes, round bodies and sharper chins are seen as desirable traits in babies and when an adult sees them in a baby, he wants to care for them more. Because humans babies are entirely dependent on adults to survive, it is very important for them to have these attributes.

Baby schema also extends to other things that are not babies. Which of these two hammers do you want to pick up?

(YouTube)
(YouTube)

How to bring it up:

‘Aww! Look at these photos of my baby! Isn’t she cute?’

Your cue: Do you know why you find your baby cute?

3. Betelgeuse explosion

Betelgeuse is a red supergiant star in the Orion constellation that is due to explode into a supernova anytime within the next one million years. It could explode 500,000 years later or while you are reading this story. And when it does, it will light up our skies for two months straight. Seriously, there will be no night for 60 days!

How to bring it up:

Isn’t the night so pretty today? You know it can get even better if Betelgeuse decides to explode right now.

4. If planets were as close as the moon

For this one, you will have to pull out your phone cause this is going to need visuals.

If you feel that nothing is more beautiful or ethereal than a full moon, think again. If the other planets of solar system were as close to Earth as the Moon the night sky will be nothing like you could ever imagine. However, it is entirely impossible as Jupiter or Saturn’s gravity will pull Earth into itself and we’d all die but hey, nothing is stopping us from watching this video. Watch out for Saturn’s rings. They look simple amazing!

How to bring it up:

The moon looks so pretty! You ever wonder how awesome it would look if it was Saturn instead of the moon?

5. This map is not correct

Actually, there is no flat, 2-D map in the world that shows Earth perfectly. It can only be done on a globe...because Earth is also a globe... duh!

However, this one maybe a little more accurate:

The Waterman World map
The Waterman World map

Why is it so difficult? Watch the video to know:

How to bring it up:

‘Ugh the GPS isn’t working again! Do you guys know that no flat map of the world is ever correct?’

6. The Library of Babel

Think up the obscurest of combination of words. Anything at all.

Whatever your brain has conjured or can ever conjure, it is all already written in the Library of Babel. It is a website made by Jonathan Basile which has a huge directory of all the words ever written or ever could be written through infinite combinations of characters. Your name, the name of your crush, your entire life story is all there somewhere. Don’t believe us? Check this out:

Can you imagine that this directory also has a version the story of your life where you are raccoon? Awesome!

How to bring it up:

‘Hey, let’s ask the Library of Babel if you and I are going to dance tonight.’

7. Anton-Babinski Syndrome

(Shutterstock)
(Shutterstock)

Anton-Babinski Syndrome is a mental condition where a person is blind but even after being constantly provided proofs of his blindness, doesn’t realise that he is indeed blind. He believes he can see and function like a normal person and therefore there is no reason for him to believe that he cannot see. For him, it is just as weird as it will be for you if someone tells you that you are actually blind. So, could you be too? Frightening, isn’t it?

How to bring it up:

‘Are you blind? No? Are you sure though?’

8. Juvenoia

Do your parents complain that your generation is the worst thing to happen to humanity? Don’t think too much of it because their parents said the same about them and you will say the same about your successors in some years. This phenomenon is called juvenoia.

Every generation has this inherent idea that for all the millions of years that humans have walked the earth, their particular generation has been the best. Which is of course not true. Let Michael from Vsauce tell you more:

How to bring it up:

Don’t you think the 90’s were the best years?

Actually, no!

9. Turtles All The Way Down

From where this paradox originated is not really known but here’s what we do know:

“A well-known scientist (some say it was Bertrand Russell) once gave a public lecture on astronomy. He described how the earth orbits around the sun and how the sun, in turn, orbits around the centre of a vast collection of stars called our galaxy. At the end of the lecture, a little old lady at the back of the room got up and said: “What you have told us is rubbish. The world is really a flat plate supported on the back of a giant tortoise.” The scientist gave a superior smile before replying, “What is the tortoise standing on?” “You’re very clever, young man, very clever,” said the old lady. “But it’s turtles all the way down!”

- Stephen Hawking (A Brief History of Time)

It is a question all atheists love to ask and all the theists love to avoid. If there is indeed really a God, who made the God? And if there is indeed a someone who made God, who made him? The chain is never-ending and thought provoking. Something that will keep the conversation going at any party.

How to bring it up:

Just do it...who doesn’t want to hear about the world on top of a pile of turtles?

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  • ABOUT THE AUTHOR
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    Soumya Srivastava is Entertainment Editor at Hindustan Times. She writes about movies and TV because what else is there to life anyway.

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