Really Weird Olympic Events That Have (Thankfully) Been Banned
From Nation, For Nation - Pulse of the Nation
All Aboard the Red Train: Your Front-Row Seat to St. Augustine’s Nights of Lights
Dog Age Calculator: How Old Is Your Dog in Human Years?
Many people believe that one year in a dog’s life is equal to seven years in a human’s life. It’s easy to see why pet lovers think this calculation is valid. After all, many humans live to around 70 years old, while many dogs pass away around the age of 10.
The seven-to-one ratio appears to add up. However, it’s a bit more complex than that.
Size Matters
According to the American Kennel Club, a medium-sized dog’s first year of life is equivalent to 15 years of a human’s life. His or her second year of life equals nine years for a human. Then each subsequent human year equals about five years for the canine.
Small dogs are usually considered senior pets when they are seven years old. However, larger dogs generally don’t live as long and are often labeled senior pets when they are just five or six years old. Depending on their weight, a 10-year-old dog is equivalent to a human who is 56 to 78 years old, while a 15-year-old dog is comparable to a 76- to 115-year-old person.
A 2019 University of California San Diego study examined the DNA of 104 Labrador retrievers in order to calculate dog-to-human age and found that the best way to do so is by multiplying the logarithm of the canine’s age by 16 and adding 31. However, it involved breed-specific data, so more research is needed.
Breed Matters
A dog’s life expectancy varies greatly based on the size and breed, according to Pet MD. For example, a bulldog has an average lifespan of six years, while a golden retriever can live for 12 years. A 2013 study by Banfield Pet Hospital found that dogs weighing less than 20 pounds generally live around 11 years compared to those over 90 pounds, who live only eight years on average. Still, there are exceptions, and some pets have shorter or longer lifespans than average.
It’s critical to take the canine’s weight into consideration when calculating their average lifespan. A nine-year-old canine weighing less than 20 pounds is around 49 in human years, compared to a nine-year-old dog weighing over 90 pounds who is approximately 70 in human years. That’s a 21-year difference in two dogs who were born in the same year.
More Research Is Needed
Researchers aren’t exactly sure why smaller dogs have longer lifespans. According to Cornelia Kraus, an evolutionary biologist at the University of Göttingen in Germany, there are several theories. Large dogs may age faster or simply start aging earlier. Or they may just have a higher mortality risk.
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From Globe, For Globe - Pulse of the Planet
At Ripley’s Believe It or Not! in Niagara Falls, you can come face-to-face with one of the wildest stunts in tightrope walking history. Charles Blondin, the French daredevil who made walking over Niagara Falls look like a stroll through the park, has several of his props on display.
The First Man to Walk a Tightrope Across Niagara Falls
Born in 1824 in France, Charles Blondin was already a tightrope performer by age four. But his greatest feat would come decades later on June 30, 1859, when he became the first person to cross Niagara Falls on a tightrope.
Blondin’s walk wasn’t just a straight shot across. Halfway through, he stunned the crowd by sitting down on the rope, drinking a bottle of wine, and then running the rest of the way across. The performance made headlines around the world and turned him into a legend.
A Taste for the Extreme
Blondin didn’t stop with just one trip across the falls. Over time, he repeated the walk hundreds of times, incorporating new breathtaking stunts with each attempt, like pushing a wheelbarrow across the rope, riding a bicycle through the mist, and even cooking an omelet over the roaring falls!
Today, Ripley’s Believe It or Not! in Niagara Falls proudly displays Blondin’s real gear, including the wheelbarrow and other objects used during his iconic high-wire performances.
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