THE WORLD IS RUNNING OUT OF WATER and other uplifting news

The world’s largest underground aquifers

 – a source of fresh water for hundreds of millions of people — 

are being depleted at alarming rates, 

according to new NASA satellite data 

that provides the most detailed picture yet of vital water reserves hidden under the Earth’s surface.

The Dust Bowl of 1933

 Underground aquifers supply 35 percent of the water used by humans worldwide. 

Demand is even greater in times of drought.

 Rain-starved California is currently tapping aquifers for 60 percent of its water use 

as its rivers and above-ground reservoirs dry up, a steep increase from the usual 40 percent.

 Aquifers can take thousands of years to fill up and only slowly recharge with water from snowmelt and rains. 

At least Americans are drinking under a cup of coffee a day.  

Scandinavians, on the other hand, drink over 2 and a half cups a day!  Speaking of which ... I miss Siv Maria

But why do we love the smell of coffee? 

According to science, it’s because coffee contains molecules for almost every attractive scent, 

including sweet, spicy, fruity, floral, smoky and apparently even rotten cabbage 

(for those who are into that).

The last time a black bear was spotted in Indiana was in 1877!   

But paw prints left behind indicated that one had traveled through the state recently.

Did you know that bears tie with sharks and alligators for the number of people killed a year?  

The number is ONE by the way.

The animal most likely to kill you?

That's right:  

cows kill twenty humans a year!

Oops!!  Elephant's Child was right:

Bees kill 58 humans a year!!  Ouch!

Do you know why you hate the sound of your own voice?

Your voice as you hear it when you speak out loud is very different from the voice the rest of the world perceives. 

That's because it comes to you via a different channel than everyone else.

Your body is better at carrying low, rich tones than the air is. 

So when those two sources of sound get combined into one perception of your own voice, it sounds lower and richer. 

Something similar is going on when we see a photo of ourselves.

We think of ourselves as who we see in mirrors, but in mirror images our bodies are flipped. 

Because most faces are pretty asymmetrical (under close observation, anyway), 

a flip can create really jarring changes. 

That's why you might wince at photos that show the real you instead of a mirror image.

Looking at yourself in the mirror becomes a firm impression. 

You have that familiarity. Familiarity breeds liking. 

You’ve established a preference for that look of your face.

So it should come as no surprise that being reminded that our faces 

-- and voices -- 

are slightly different than we think them to be can be a bit unnerving.

Now, don't you feel more informed? 

:-)