11 Facts About Human Beings: Explore The Less Known
Explore fascinating, lesser-known facts about human beings, from biology to behaviour, revealing surprising insights into what makes us unique and complex creatures.
FACTS ABOUT
Mwenda Kelvin (Chief Editor)
12/2/20246 min read
People Human Beings (Credit: Pixabay)
We frequently go to the obvious (our intelligence, our culture, or our cutting-edge technologies) when considering what makes us special. However, there are some striking facts about the human body and mind that may cause you to reconsider your preconceived notions about what it is to be human. The truth is frequently stranger, far more fascinating than fiction, whether it is having the ability to "smell" emotions or sharing genetic material with bananas. This blog post article will examine 11 little-known facts about people that not only highlight our complexity but also show some unexpected relationships to the outside world as follows:
Humans Share 60% of Their DNA With Bananas: Bananas and humans appear to be very different at first glance. One is a simple fruit, and the other is a highly evolved, complicated life but you might be surprised by the genetic similarities whereby it is true that bananas and humans share roughly 60% of our DNA (Deoxyribonucleic acid) which does not imply that we are 60% bananas, but rather that all living things share a number of fundamental genetic processes that are vital to existence, including metabolism and cell division. The interdependence of life on Earth and the fact that, despite our seeming differences, we all have biological origins in common demonstrated by this shared DNA also emphasising the fact that all living creatures including humans have a basic biological design.
Your Voice Can Be Heard Differently: You are not alone if you have ever recorded your voice and been surprised by how different it sounds from what you hear in your mind. When you speak, your voice sounds far fuller and richer than what other people hear and this is due to the fact that sound may pass through both bone and air whereby your voice gains depth and resonance as a result of the vibrations that pass through your skull's bones when you talk. However, without the advantage of bone conduction, the voice captured on a device is merely transmitted over the air and because of this, your voice sounds thinner and higher-pitched on recordings, which is a striking contrast to how it feels when you talk.
Humans Are Bioluminescent: Humans are bioluminescent, which means that although it may sound like something from a science fiction film, we truly give out a slight glow but since it is so faint, this glow is not apparent to the naked eye. Similar to the shining effect observed in certain fireflies or deep-sea animals, the light we release is the consequence of chemical reactions that take place within our cells whereby photons released during metabolic reactions are the cause of the process, which is called bioluminescence and even though we are unable to perceive this radiance, it serves as an intriguing reminder that humans too have characteristics in common with the more ethereal creatures of nature.
Approximately 37 Trillion Cells Are in The Average Human Body: The 37 trillion cells that make up the human body are an amazing collection, each with a unique role where your skin, organs, blood, and tissues are all composed of these cells not forgetting the fact that these cells are continuously recreating themselves is even more amazing. Our lives are filled with constant cell regeneration: red blood cells are replaced roughly every four months, skin cells are renewed every few weeks, and other cell types renew at various times. Even with so many cells, the body's complexity is managed by the complicated communication between them, which makes everything work together harmoniously.
Bacterial Cells Outnumber Human Cells: Think again if you believed that you were more human than anything else because there are an estimated 1.3 bacterial cells for every human cell in the human body, which is more than the number of human cells whereby these bacteria are actually vital to our health, despite the fact that this may sound a little unpleasant with most of them residing in our gut microbiome, where they are essential for immunity, digestion, and even mental well-being. Indeed, studies have demonstrated that our gut microbiota affects everything from our weight to our emotions, and that abnormalities in this microbiota have been connected to a number of illnesses.
Tongue Prints Are Different: Fingerprints are well-known, but did you realize that the tongue has a distinct print as well???.....The tongue's surface has unique ridges, grooves, and papillae that create a tongue print, much like fingerprints or retinal patterns and the patterns on our tongues can be as unique as our fingerprints, despite the fact that they are not frequently used for identification.with the degree of particular and uniqueness in our bodies, even in seemingly ordinary elements like the tongue, being shown by this intriguing fact.
Humans Can Smell Emotions: We frequently underestimate how strong the human sense of smell is in the sense that humans can truly smell the scent of various emotions, according to research and according to studies, other people may sense the chemicals our bodies release in reaction to stress, anxiety, or joy like for instance, when someone is anxious or afraid, their body releases certain chemicals that can cause others around them to react which explains why it is sometimes claimed that one can "feel" someone's excitement or nervousness before they even say a word and since our emotional state and our sense of smell are closely related, we may be more sensitive to other people's emotions than we are aware of.
We Have a "Second Brain" in Our Gut: Did you know that the term "second brain" is occasionally used to describe your gut???.....More than 100 million neurons line the human gut, more than there are in the spinal cord or peripheral nervous system with the enteric nervous system being a sophisticated network of neurons that may operate independently of the brain which is crucial for digesting, but it also affects mood and even cognitive function, thus, the gut is sometimes referred to as the "seat of emotions" due to the production of neurotransmitters like serotonin that impact our mood and cognitive function not forgetting that for both digestion and general mental wellness, a healthy gut is necessary.
Human Body is Taller in The Morning: You may have observed that when you wake up, you appear slightly taller which is because your spine's discs have an opportunity to expand and reabsorb fluid during the night, which makes you somewhat taller but throughout the day, the discs are compressed by gravity, resulting in a reduction in height, hence you will therefore be at your tallest if you measure yourself in the morning; by the evening, you might be a little shorter.
Human Nose Can Detect Over 1 Trillion Scents: The majority of us believe that dogs and other animals have considerably superior senses of smell but in reality, our sense of smell is much more sophisticated than we realize whereby over 1 trillion different odours can be detected by the human nose, which is significantly more than was previously thought and although scientists previously believed that humans could only identify roughly 10,000 scents, new research has revealed that the true number is much greater with our sense of smell being among the most advanced in the animal kingdom since our noses are home to over 400 olfactory receptors that combine to detect and identify an astounding array of smells.
Human Brain is More Connected Than The Milky Way's Stars: Many people consider the human brain to be among the most intricate natural systems because there are over 86 billion neurons in it, and each one creates thousands of synaptic connections. There are more of these connections overall than there are stars in the Milky Way galaxy where an estimated 100 trillion synaptic connections make up the brain, which is significantly more than the number of stars in our galaxy with everything from fundamental physiological processes to sophisticated intellect, memory, and emotion being controlled by this vast network.
Summary
We still do not fully understand the human body and mind, despite our complexity. From the micro-organisms inside of us to the bananas that share a startlingly large portion of our DNA, the above 11 amazing facts demonstrate how unique we are and how inter-connected we are with the world. We can start to comprehend the complicated chain of life and our place in it better by acknowledging the astounding complexity of our bodies and there is no doubt that being human is considerably more remarkable than we sometimes realize, whether it is our capacity to perceive over a trillion scents or the fact that we sparkle like fireflies.