Hey there, Who's Smarted Plus subscribers.
Welcome to another edition of Smarty Qs, where I, the trusty narrator, answer questions from you, the smarty pants listeners.
Remember, any subscriber can submit a question simply by emailing me at whosmarted at whosmartedcom.
Okay, without further ado, let's start the Smarty Q.
Our first question is from a savvy listener in California whose name happens to be Savvy.
They ask, why is the keyboard arranged as QWERTY?
Great question, Savvy.
QWERTY is the name of the key layout that's been in use on typing devices across the English-speaking world for nearly 150 years.
You might think a system with such a long history would be backed by loads of research.
But you'd be wrong.
The thinking behind QWERTY was that it would slow typists down.
You heard that right.
QWERTY was originally designed to be slower than other key layouts.
Why?
Because if you've ever seen an old-timey typewriter, you know they're mechanical.
When you press a key, it activates a lever that stamps a piece of paper with a letter.
If you press the keys too fast, the levers jam together.
So inventors developed a key layout that placed common two-letter combinations far enough away from each other to avoid jamming.
Was it scientific?
No.
Was it practical?
Most definitely.
And the layout stuck, kind of like a jammed key.
Get it?
Okay, our next question comes from our smarty friend Olivia, who asks Why do you see more veins on people when they get older?
Thanks for the question, Olivia.
You see, skin has three distinct layers.
The epidermis, which is the layer you see.
The dermis, which is further down and houses stuff like nerves and hair follicles.
And the hypodermis, which is below the dermis and is made up of fat and tissue.
Thank you for watching.
This causes the epidermis to become pale and translucent, making it easier to see through the skin and therefore see more veins under the skin, like the ones on my grandma's ankles that look like a spider web.
That's why I call her Spider-Gram.
Okay, moving on.
Our final question was submitted by several Smarty listeners and goes like this.
Why are goosebumps called goosebumps?
Hmm.
I don't know.
Why do snozzberries taste like snozzberries?
Because they're snozzberries.
Joking aside, the bumps on your skin caused by cold, fear or excitement are called goose bumps for a very simple reason.
They resemble the skin of a plucked goose.
A goose, of course, is a general name for various wild or domesticated water birds of the family Anatidae.
The question I now have is, can a goose get goose bumps?
The answer is no.
But they do get bumps when the weather gets cold.
These bumps cause their feathers to stick out and help trap body heat that keeps the goose warm.
How about that?
That's whosmarted at whosmarted.com.
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Hey there, Who Smarted Plus subscribers.
Welcome to another edition of Smarty Qs, where I, the trusty narrator, answer questions from you, the Smarty Pants listeners.
Remember, anyone can submit a question simply by emailing me at whosmarted at whosmarted.com.
Okay, without further ado, let's start the Smarty Q.
Our first question comes from a smarty pants named Lincoln, who wants to know why are goggles called goggles?
What an interesting question.
And it was certainly one I did not know the answer to off the top of my head.
According to my friends at Vocabulary.com, the word goggles was first used around the year 1715.
And it comes from the Middle English word goglin, which means to roll the eyes about.
Okay.
It's believed the first pair of goggles may have been worn by the Inuit people, indigenous or local to the Arctic.
They wore goggles made from bone or walrus tusks to help prevent snow blindness.
The first known goggles used for swimming and diving were invented in Persia in the 14th century and were made from polished tortoise shells and were used for pearl diving.
Today, goggles are worn for safety or to see in the dark or with virtual reality.
That will really have your eyes rolling about.
Okay, our next question comes from one of our Spotify listeners and commenters, who asks why don't we send our trash into space?
Oh boy, that's another very interesting question.
One that has several interesting answers as to why sending trash into space is not a practical solution.
For one thing, it would be very, very expensive to launch trash into space.
Some estimates say it would cost a staggering 33 quadrillion a year.
That is a 33 followed by 15 zeros.
So, yeah, not happening.
Not to mention a rocket carrying radioactive waste could explode during takeoff.
But even if we could afford it and found a way to store the bad stuff, the last thing we need to do is to create more space junk.
There's already plenty of space junk orbiting Earth.
Adding tons more would potentially damage any spacecraft or satellites in collisions.
You're much better off tossing your trash in the proper receptacle.
And of course, recycle.
Okay, last question.
This one comes from my smarty friend Eminem, who also loves to comment on Spotify.
She really wants to know, why are dogs afraid of fireworks?
Smarty Pants.
If you or someone you know owns a dog or multiple dogs, then you've probably witnessed or heard about dogs being afraid of certain loud, unexpected noises like thunder or a truck backfiring or, of course, fireworks.
But why?
Why is this so scary to our doggy friends?
Well, part of the answer is in what I already said.
Fireworks and thunder are both loud and unpredictable, and come without warning.
And since dogs have a keener sense of hearing than humans, the loud noises can be even more confusing, alarming or upsetting.
Also, the flashes of light that come with thunder in the form of lightning or fireworks as they explode, can add to your dog's anxiety.
In many cases, fireworks or thunder will set off a dog's fight or flight response, which is why your doggy may start barking or growling or looking for a place to hide on the 4th of July.
They might express other signs of anxiety as well, like restlessness, panting, pacing, or whining.
Now, not all dogs get scared.
Some aren't affected at all.
Just like some people are afraid of certain things like heights or dogs, and others aren't.
Also, many dogs may become more scared of fireworks or thunder as they get older.
As dogs do get older, they tend to be more fearful, and cognitive decline may also lead to changes in how they perceive sudden loud noises.
The best thing to do in a situation where loud noises are scaring your pup is to take them to a safe space and reassure them that things are okay.
You can try wrapping them in a blanket or towel and comforting them.
If the noise is still audible, you can try turning on white noise or a TV or music to mask the sounds of the fireworks or thunder.
But if your dog is very scared and wants to hide, it's best not to force interaction with them.
Just be there for them when it's over.
And speaking of over, that's it for another fun fact-filled episode of SmartyQs, made up of questions submitted by you, the SmartyPants.
Again, if you have a question you'd like answered by me on SmartyQs, or if you just want to say hi trusty, you can email me at whosmarted, at whosmartedcom.
That's whosmarted at whosmarted.com.
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