Cool+Facts


 * Cool Facts! **


 * This page has some cool, funny and interesting facts about a range of topics. If you know a fact that you think people might be interested in, let Miss Quick know and she'll put it on the page!**


 * Did you know that cats use their whiskers to check if a space is too small for them to fit through? If they can't easily fit their whiskers, they can't easily fit their body! **




 * The Blue Whale can produce the loudest sound of any animal - the noise can be detected 800km away! Just to compare: a Qantas Jet taking off makes a sound of 120 decibels - the Blue Whale can make a sound as loud as 188 decibels. Blue Whales can also be as big as a Boeing Jet! **


 * The smallest bone in the human body is called the Stapes bone, or 'stirrup' because of its shape, and it is 2.8 millimeters long. It works with two other bones in the ear, called the 'hammer' (Malleus) and the 'anvil' (Incus). When we hear a sound, it causes our eardrum to vibrate, which then causes the three bones to vibrate. These vibrations then travel through the snail-shell shaped 'cochlear' which is lined with tiny sensitive hairs. These hairs pick up the vibrations and send nerve impluses to our brain, which then 'works out' what we are hearing.**



**The two animals that are part of Australia's Coat of Arms are the Kangaroo and the Emu - neither of these animals can walk backwards. Some people think this was done on purpose - showing Australia as a nation that only moves forwards in its development. The six pictures in the shield represent our States. Victoria is represented by the middle picture in the top row; blue background, Southern Cross and Imperial Crown.**



**Butterflies taste their food by standing on it - their taste receptors in in their feet! The biggest butterfly species in the world is called the Queen Alexandra's Birdwing Butterfly, which is poisonous and is found in Papua New Guniea. The wingspan of the female can be near 30cm wide! Males are usually much smaller.**