Fourteen-twenty

We see in stereo, we hear in stereo, we also smell in stereo . In this study, participants were given a flowery smell at a high concentration in one nostril, and low in the other. Then they looked at a ' visually presented optic-flow stimuli that simulated self-movement ' - basically a video that looks as if you are flying through star-filled space. When asked to say which side was a stronger smell, they could not say. But when asked to which side they were flying through space, they consistently guessed towards the more smelly side. The authors suggest that we evolved a sense of smell for ' navigating in a chemical world '.

The perfect gravity-assisted ward round – which starts with patients at the top of the hospital and works down sequentially – remains an elusive dream for all those whose rounds require them to see patients scattered over various floors. Although a pure anti-gravity ward round is easily avoided, bleeps, lost radiology request forms, and realising that one's stethoscope has been left on level 7 may all necessitate traipsing back up stairs, resulting in a partial anti-gravity ward round . Not infrequently, consciousness becomes impaired at some point during the round; the so-called complex partial anti-gravity ward round . In such situations, a cup of tea is generally curative.

Delhi belly Nile runs Cairo colon Rangoon runs Bali belly Aztec two-step Hong Kong dog Bonus eponym: Montezuma's revenge

Our ward round was brought to a halt by a Portuguese patient who spoke no English. The interpreter would not be available until tomorrow, and we tried in vain to explain to him that he would need a coronary angiogram (a challenging mime). The consultant produced his smartphone and proudly declared that his translator app would save the day.  ' Do you have any pain? ' he asked the machine. ' Do you have any pain? ' it asked the patient, in flawless Portuguese.  ' You'll need a test called an angiogram ,' he told the machine.  ' You'll need a testicular angiogram ,' it told the patient, without so much as a blush. 

This is a such a satisfying word to say, or just look at. Used in a sentence, here .

Use your hand to pick something up. In a split-second your brain had to work out where to put your hand, where to position your fingertips, and how tightly to grip. Computers are smart – but it is not easy to teach a computer to do this. Your brain is much smarter than a computer. Your brain used a trick – it ran a simulation about the object. Before you picked it up, your brain thought ‘it’s this size, this shape, weighs so-and-so much…’ and so on. Another way of saying simulation is a practice run, which exists only inside your mind. Your brain is the fastest and most advanced simulation machine that has ever existed. How did your brain make this simulation? Partly from perception, which is what your senses told you. And partly from memory, which is what your past experience and learning told you. If you saw the object before you picked it up, your brain got a visual perception, and made some guesses based on how it looked. Also, your brain compared the image with your memory to work...

Clasp your hands together with fingers interlaced. Notice which thumb is on top. Now relax, and re-clasp your hands, but this time with the other thumb on top. Sit back and enjoy.

Some call it the photic sneeze. Others call it the ACHOO (Autosomal-dominant Compelling Helio-Ophthalmic Outburst) syndrome. We all know it - sometimes you look at a bright light and it makes you sneeze. Or maybe it doesn't happen to you, but you know someone who does get it. Well, apparently it could be down to a mutation on the long arm of chromosome 2, region 2, band 2, sub-band 3.  Quite a specific address.

The reported associations of vitamin D deficiency never cease to amaze. A study  published in 2013 examined possible indicators of deficiency in the characters of the The Hobbit, and concluded that 'the triumph of good over evil may be assisted to some extent by the poor diet and lack of sunlight experienced by the evil characters.' A sound bit of advice for anyone hoping to reach their eleventy-first birthday.