Is your child a stubborn one who doesn’t want to do anything related to science?
Well, it’s very common for children to be uninterested in science, especially biology, as it sometimes just feels like they’re forced to memorise chunks of information that will never be useful in later life
Nonetheless, Singapore’s Ministry of Education (MOE) recognizes that learning science is important and has still made it compulsory for students to learn physics, chemistry, and biology from P3 onwards.
So, now you’re thinking of ways to get your child to be interested in science and biology since they have no choice but to learn it, right?
Well, I’m here to help.
What is Biology?
Okay, before I dive into the intriguing facts, I feel that it’s important for you to know what biology is so you can explain it to your child in layman’s terms.
Biology is the study of living organisms like humans, animals, and plants.
That’s it.
Not hard, right?
Mind-Boggling Human Biology Facts
Now that you know how to explain to your child what Biology is in layman’s terms, let’s dive straight into the interesting facts!
1. We Have 12 Systems
Most of us are born with 12 systems that work harmoniously for us to operate properly daily.
Here are the 12 systems,
- Circulatory System
- Digestive System
- Endocrine System
- Immune System
- Integumentary System
- Lymphatic System
- Muscular System
- Nervous System
- Reproductive System
- Respiratory System
- Skeletal System
- Urinary System
2. We Actually Have 9 Senses
I’m pretty sure all of us are used to the norm of hearing people say that humans only have 5 senses, and the only human with more than 5 senses is Spider-Man (Spider-Sense).
But I’m here to burst your bubble and tell you that we have more than 5 senses. (sorry Spider-Man)
Here are 9 senses,
- Vision
- Hearing
- Smell
- Taste
- Touch
- Balance
- Temperature
- Proprioception
- Pain
3. Appendix Does Have Its Use
Many people have come to the conclusion that the appendix is the most useless organ in the human body as it has lost its function millions of years ago.
Sometimes, our appendix might even get an infection and cause us to experience appendicitis.
Such a useless organ right?
On the contrary, the appendix actually still has an important function when it comes to aiding our digestive system.
The appendix acts as a house for the good bacteria that help to break down the food that passes through our digestive system.
After a strenuous time of breaking down food, the bacteria heads to our appendix to rest and prepare to work again when we consume our next meal.
The appendix is also a place for the bacteria to cultivate and breed, which ensures that there will always be good bacteria to help break down our food.
Better start loving your appendix if you haven’t been!
4. We’re Made Up of More Atoms Than You Think
I’m sure you’ve heard of millions, billions, and trillions.
But have you heard of octillions?
Do you know how many 0s are there in an octillion?
There are 27 0s in an octillion!
The average adult comprises 7 octillion atoms!
How insane is that?
5. We Were Once Furry Beings
As most of you would already have known, we’re closely related to chimpanzees.
In fact, there is strong evidence that we humans evolved from chimpanzees.
Despite being an evolution of chimpanzees, we do have some different features such as our hair.
Hair can mainly be found at the top of our head, whereas a chimpanzee’s whole body is covered with fur.
Scientists believe that our ancestors were covered with fur way back in time, during the Ice Age, so that it was easier for them to trap heat and harder for parasites to enter their skin.
But as the world progresses and humans become more “civilised”, we start to shed the layer of fur and grow hair instead.
And now here we are, with hair that can mainly be seen at the top of our heads.
6. We Aren’t The Only Ones With Goosebumps
Goosebumps occur when small muscles at the base of our hair follicles tense up, which then pulls the hair, making it erect.
Goosebumps tend to happen when we feel cold, it’s our body’s natural reaction in an attempt to keep us warm.
But sadly, it doesn’t work most of the time because our hair is too thin.
Apart from us humans, mammals also have this body reaction where they fluff up their fur when they feel threatened so they look bigger and more dangerous.
This can be commonly seen on cats, whenever they feel threatened, they’ll arch the middle of their body to look slightly bigger.
Despite the fact that we humans and animals experience the same type of sensation, goosebumps don’t make us look bigger at all, which is kind of sad.
7. We Aren’t Physically Touching Anything
Everything in this world is made of atoms and they’re electromagnetic.
What happens when you put 2 magnets near each other?
I’m sure you’ve gotten the gist of what I’m about to say after this question.
Yes, in our reality, we aren’t physically touching anything.
When you think that you’re touching your phone’s screen, you aren’t actually touching it.
This is due to the fact that atoms never touch each other, the closer an atom is to another, the stronger the repulsion between them.
So, when you’re typing on your phone, the thing that’s actually touching your phone screen is the repulsion between the atoms in your fingers and the atoms in the phone screen.
Crazy huh?
8. Bone Facts
Femur, the strongest and longest bone (stretching from hip to knee) in our skeletal system is located within our thighs.
The femur is known as the strongest bone found in our body because it can 30 times our weight.
It’s also known to be stronger than steel!
Now that you know that Femur is the strongest and longest bone in our body, do you know which bone is the largest?
The largest bone, gluteus maximus is located at our buttocks!
Then where’s the smallest bone located?
I’m glad you asked!
The smallest bone in our body, stapes, is located in our ears, at a size of 3×5 mm.
That’s really tiny.
Now here comes the last bone fact, 25% of bones in our bodies are located at our feet!
To make learning even more exciting, you might want to explore some educational resources. For example, you can find great deals on books about biology at the Book Depository. Use book depository discount codes to get started.
Weird…
Conclusion
Now that I’ve laid all these intriguing biology facts, I hope this article will help get your child to be interested in biology.
And if they have developed an interest, please don’t hesitate to contact SmileTutor for a Private Biology Tutor so that your child can take his/her learning further!
Thanks for reading.
Here are some related article you might like to read:
Top 10 Secret Ways to Excel in Your Biology Class – SmileTutor
5 Study Techniques To Master Biology In A-Levels – SmileTutor
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