Uncle John’s Impossible Questions & Astounding Answers Read Free Page B

caused by stress. Marshall believed otherwise. He hypothesized that ulcers are caused by corkscrew-shaped bacteria known as Helicobacter pylori . When he announced his theory in 1982, the medical community laughed at him. Every doctor worth his diploma knew that bacteria can’t survive in stomach acid. Marshall was convinced they could but was having trouble proving that to his peers. Why? The usual test subjects—pigs and rats—aren’t affected by H. pylori . So Marshall cooked up a batch of the bacteria and drank it himself. Result: He got a raging ulcer, which proved his theory and changed the way ulcers are treated.
    Footnote: Back in 1899, a Polish doctor named Walery Jaworski discovered H. pylori and even suggested that it might cause some stomach ills. However, his theory remained unknown outside of Poland until Marshall’s discovery.
     
Mover
    What are the three parts of the small intestine?

Floater
    The hip bone may be connected to the thigh bone, but there’s one bone that’s not connected to any other bone. Do you know what it is? (A forensic investigator sure does.)

Pumper
    How many gallons of blood will your heart pump today?

     
Mover
    The duodenum, jejunum , and ileum make up the small intestine, which is about 18 feet long and an inch in diameter. After leaving the stomach, partially digested food enters the C-shaped duodenum, which is about a foot long. Next, it goes into the jejunum and then to the ileum, both of which twist and turn upon themselves. The inner linings of these two sections contain tiny finger-like bumps called villi ; their job is to absorb nutrients into the bloodstream. What’s left of your meal then goes to the large intestine. Although it’s only five feet long, it’s much wider—about three inches in diameter (which is why it’s referred to as “large”). The entire journey takes several hours…and ends with a flush.
Floater
    It’s the hyoid bone , and it’s unique in that no other bone touches it. Located in the neck just above the larynx, the hyoid anchors the tongue muscles. This bone is well known to forensic investigators: If a deceased person’s hyoid is broken, it almost always means that the cause of death was strangulation.
Pumper
    About 2,000 gallons, if you’re average. The heart has to pump that much because most adults have about 60,000 miles of blood vessels through which the blood must continually flow. How far is 60,000 miles? More than two trips around the equator.
     
Workplace Hazards
    Inflamed tendons, dental injuries, erythema, scaling, cyst formation, scarring, and inflammatory pustules. These types of maladies are common among members of what profession?

     
Workplace Hazards
    Were you thinking football players? Cops? Deep-sea fishermen? How about pro wrestlers? Wrong. The answer is classical musicians, who are prone to painful, sometimes career-ending, afflictions similar to those suffered by athletes. This isn’t surprising, considering that professional musicians perform repetitive motions for as many as six hours every day—which is how much you have to practice to get that good.
    Case in point: A cellist’s left hand, playing just the last movement of Mahler’s Fifth Symphony, changes position on the strings roughly 6,400 times. Other examples of common injuries and maladies suffered by classical musicians:
    • Violinists can develop skin cysts and pustules on their necks. (It’s called “fiddler’s neck.”)
    • String players are also especially prone to chronic pain in their shoulders, arms, and neck.
    • Keyboard and woodwind players can suffer from wrist injuries to the point of becoming unable to use silverware or turn doorknobs.
    • Pressure from a brass instrument’s mouthpiece can cause dental, lip, and facial nerve damage.
    • And no matter where the musician sits in an orchestra, he or she will most likely be exposed to more than enough loud noises to cause at least some hearing loss. A study of classical