Things I learned lately - 31 Jan

• People have had their Instagram accounts closed because of posting pictures where a little pubic hair showed on the outside of a bathing suit.
• There is a cafe in London (with plans to expand), called Cereal Killer. It sells nothing but 120 kinds of cereal to make a bowl to eat with 12 kinds of milk to pour onto it.
• Each seed in an apple is genetically unique. So planting a seed will not grow a tree with the same kind of apple you're eating.
• At the Starbucks outlet in the CIA's Langley headquarters, baristas aren't allowed to write customers' names on their cups.
• The most effective office regime is to work for 52 consecutive minutes and then have a 17-minute break.
• Dollar squiggles on the pavement denote electric cables below.
• American teachers are allowed to whack children with a paddle (a wooden bat a little shorter and thinner than a cricket bat) in 19 states.
• "It's dead to us. Facebook is something we all got in middle school because it was cool but now is seen as an awkward family dinner party we can't really leave." ~ a teenager
• In a new McDonald's near its HQ in Oak Brook, IL, customers don't all queue at the counter. Some go to a touch screen, choose a bun, toppings and sauces from 20+ premium ingredients. This includes grilled mushrooms, guacamole and caramelized onions. Then they sit, wait about 7 minutes and a server brings their burger to the table. "Create Your Taste" burgers is planned to roll out in up to 2,000 restaurants, by late 2015.
• How to get an ice cube out of the tray without spilling them. Twist the tray like you normally would. Lick your finger and touch it to the top of a cube. The saliva freezes to the cube, turning your finger into a mini-crane. Lift and enjoy.
• At least 15 scientific studies have proven that vitamin C supplements do nothing to prevent the common cold. Linus Pauling promoted the benefits of vitamin C (and other supplements) since 1970. Every one of his claims have been scientifically refuted. Getting your vitamins naturally is the only proven way to reduce illness.
• Sand typically contains particles of quartz, feldspar and hornblende with a dash of calcium carbonate (fragmented sea shells). Most of the sand on North American beaches is around 5000 years old.
• Carbonated water was first made in 1767.