Do you really know?

Christmas is coming and at Do You Really Know, we just can't wait! Now everybody knows that means pressies under the tree, precious family moments and a hearty Christmas dinner. It all calls for a lot of preparation, but the joy of the season makes it worth it, doesn't it! Still, the holiday season can cause some people to get the blues, so let's not forget them. This week, the team are discussing...

To stay in shape, it's crucial that you watch what you eat and steer clear of snacks. What's less commonly known, though, is that there are specific times when the body burns more calories. Researchers at Harvard University were astonished when they stumbled upon this revelation. In a 2018 study published in Current Biology, they found that, "The number of calories people burn at rest varies depen...

We've all experienced it: the sudden urge to pee when it's cold is a common thing. This connection was supposedly discovered by Austrian physician Alfred Adler back in 1918. His experiment involved injecting cold water into a bladder to see how the body reacts. You might think it caused the kidneys to contract, but that's not the case... What did Adler discover then? Are there other factors explai...

Humans are the only creatures on Earth that shed tears. Whether it's tears of joy, laughter, anger, pain, sadness, or fatigue, the emotions that bring about crying are diverse. You might be familiar with these emotional triggers, but have you ever wondered about the physiological explanations behind them? Let's start by categorising tears into three types. There are "basal" tears that maintain a c...

We've all had that moment of slipping on our headphones heading to school or work and feeling like an unstoppable force. But while most of us leave that unwavering confidence at the front door, for some, it's a whole different story. Their analyses are top-notch, decisions flawless, and social networks unbeatable. This phenomenon has a name – it's called the "god complex." Where does this god comp...

Panto, short for pantomime, has become a staple of British Christmas celebrations but surprisingly its origins are neither British or Christmassy. It has its roots in the ancient Roman festival of Saturnalia, which was celebrated in December and involved dressing up as the opposite gender, swapping roles, and having a lot of fun. The word ‘pantomime’ comes from the Latin ‘pantomimus’, which means...

Ever had that moment when you're relishing a juicy fig, and someone drops the bomb that you might be chowing down on a wasp? Surprising as it sounds, it's true. Fig wasps do their thing by pollinating figs from the inside, but unfortunately, they sometimes get stuck in there! Now, bear in mind, these wasps are tiny, at around 1 to 2 mm tiny, so you won't notice them when you take a bite. But, let'...

As winter quickly approaches, you might find yourself yearning to spend your evenings nestled on the couch, wrapped in a cosy blanket, sipping on hot tea or cocoa, all while enjoying a comforting movie – and ideally, with some company. You know, someone to share cuddles with. Who is that someone? Well, that's what cuffing season is all about. Think of it as the time of year when temperatures drop,...

The Turner Prize was established in 1984 by a group of art patrons who wanted to celebrate and support innovative and experimental art in Britain. The prize is named after J.M.W. Turner, a radical painter who challenged the conventions of his time with his bold use of colour, light and movement. The prize is awarded every year by the Tate Gallery to an artist under 50 years old who has made a sign...

Our bodies are covered in billions of bacteria, and while some are good for our skin barrier, others can be troublemakers, contributing to the development of skin diseases. In September 2023, American researchers from George Washington University published a study in Frontiers in Microbiology. It found that our skin hosts its own microbiota, much like our intestines. This microbiota is a mix of mi...

Whether it’s making a wish over a birthday cake, waiting for lottery results, or opening an email following a job interview, it's pretty common to cross your fingers. It’s a way of communicating that we’re hoping luck swings in our favor and our wishes come true. Often, you don’t even need to physically cross your fingers; simply saying "Fingers crossed” is enough to get the message across. But th...

Whether it's a matter of courtesy or preventing the spread of germs, it's not uncommon for people to hold back a sneeze. When this happens, the intercostal muscles contract strongly, but without the release of air if the nose is pinched or the mouth is closed. However, sneezing is a natural bodily reflex designed to expel dust, microbes, or any other irritating substances from the nasal cavity. Ou...

What do chicken nuggets, margarine and instant noodles all have in common? Well, they may look tasty, but they’re loaded with sugar, salt, fat and chemicals that strip away their nutritional value. That’s due to the heavy processing that goes into making them, which sees them completely transformed from the original raw ingredients.  And they’re increasingly ever present on our shelves and in our...

According to the NHS, approximately 1,600 babies are born every day in the United Kingdom. But what often goes unspoken are the nine months leading up to this event—the periods of anxiety, doubt, and self-discovery that mothers inevitably experience.  A study published in Evolution, Medicine & Public Health journal in April 2023, found that 62% of women grapple with a panic-inducing fear of pregna...

Flat Earthers believe that the Earth is not  spherical, but rather a flat disc and the Sun and the Moon are also flat discs that circle above the Earth. According to them the edges of the world are surrounded by a wall of ice, which is what we know as Antarctica. And as for the pictures of the Earth from space - they are all fake, part of a huge conspiracy to hide the truth. The earliest cultures...

Choosing the right toothpaste can be a bit of a challenge, either because there's a plethora of options or because you might have specific requirements. It's not always clear what these products contain, whether it's advisable to steer clear of certain toothpaste, or if the organic versions are just as effective. The main goal is to tackle dental plaque before it turns into tartar, preventing issu...

"There are way easier places to work, but nobody ever changed the world on 40 hours a week." That’s exactly what Elon Musk tweeted in November 2018, as part of a call for new talent to join his companies. The post went viral, leading to a lot of people critiquing Musk's take on work and merit. Despite the criticism he faced, a lot of people, and followers of hustle culture in particular, stood fir...

The Mandela Effect is a phenomenon in which a large number of people share a false memory of something that never happened or happened differently from reality. The term was coined by Fiona Broome, a paranormal researcher, who discovered that she and many others had a vivid memory of Nelson Mandela dying in prison in the 1980s, when he actually died in 2013, after serving as the president of South...

You've been seeing someone for a few weeks now. The romantic dinners, cozy nights at each other's places, and sweet morning or evening texts have been giving you those butterfly feelings. It's shaping up to be the start of something beautiful. But then, out of the blue, your date drops a bomb during a conversation, mentioning a Tinder match or a date with someone else in town. It catches you off g...

If your partner is constantly snoring, hogging the blanket, or tossing and turning every five minutes, and you're finding it increasingly challenging to share a bed, know that you're not alone. A 2017 study revealed that while 50% of those surveyed claim to sleep as a couple, 41% prefer solo slumber, and 54% feel sleep-deprived. There are some tricks to make co-sleeping more manageable. First off,...

In 2013, American actress Angelina Jolie made headlines by revealing in the New York Times that she had undergone a preventive double mastectomy to reduce her risk of cancer. The procedure consists of removing both breasts and Jolie explained that a genetic test had shown she carried a mutation in the BRCA1 gene, significantly raising her chances of developing breast or ovarian cancer. A decade la...

As the years go by, those extra inches around the abdomen tend to sneak up on us, and that’s especially true once we hit our fifties. One major player is hormonal shifts. For women, the onset of menopause often brings about weight gain and a burgeoning belly, thanks to a decline in estrogen levels that prompts the body to store fat in the midsection.  And fellas, you're not off the hook either—age...

The butterfly effect is the idea that a small change in one part of the world can have huge consequences in another. It is often used as a metaphor for how our actions can shape the future in unpredictable ways. The term was coined by the American mathematician and meteorologist Edward Lorenz, who was studying the behavior of weather systems. He discovered that even tiny variations in the initial...

When a woman is heavily pregnant, holiday or travel plans don't typically top the priority list. After all, flying isn't generally recommended during the latter stages of pregnancy. But that hasn’t stopped the trend of birth tourism from developing. The basic idea is for a mother to give birth in a country different to where they live, essentially so that her child gets dual nationality. That may...

When it comes to what counts as being unfaithful in a relationship, everyone has their own definition. Some might say that only physical contact with another person is cheating, whereas others will argue that even a mildly flirtatious conversation is unacceptable. That's where the concept of micro-cheating comes into play. Micro cheating refers to seemingly minor actions that suggest a person is e...