Carbon is unique in that it is known to form up to 10 million different compounds.

There are typically 40 million bacterial cells in a gram of soil.

Although the brain is the tool we use to detect pain, there are no pain receptors in the brain itself -- so the brain cannot actually feel pain.

All the stars, planets and galaxies that can be seen today make up just 4 percent of the universe. The other 96 percent is made of stuff astronomers can't see, detect or even comprehend. These mysterious substances are called dark energy and dark matter.

Your stomach manufactures a new lining every three days to avoid digesting itself.

Older redwoods are able to survive fires because their bark is so thick and acts as a fireproof shell.

Deoxyribonucleic acid contains the 5-carbon deoxyribose sugar.

Your nose can remember 50,000 different scents.

Extreme cold, while inhibiting the growth of most bacteria, does not usually kill them. And although heat and high and low pH will kill most known species of bacteria, certain species of Archaea can live in these extreme environments.

There are approximately 5x10³⁰ bacteria on Earth, forming a biomass which exceeds that of all plants and animals.