11 Things We Didn't Know Last Week

News, discoveries and ... fun

1. Bacteria in your gut - some crave sugar, others want fat - might be dictating what you eat. (Learn more at The Atlantic)

2. Having an office window can help you sleep at night, lower your blood pressure and keep you in a better mood. (Learn more at AARP)

3. $100 is worth $115.74 in Mississippi, but only $84.60 in Washington, D.C. (Learn more at Washington Post)

>> America's Best Small Towns

4. The complexity of a 4-year-old's drawings can predict intelligence a decade later. (Learn more at King's College London)

5. Yawning isn't your body's trick to send oxygen to the brain after all. (Learn more at the Wall Street Journal)

6. Too much salt in your diet is bad, but too little salt might be just as bad. (Learn more at AARP)

>> Get travel discounts with your AARP Member Advantages.

7. The bigger the wedding, the better the marriage. (Learn more at National Marriage Project)

8. Honda Accords and Chevy pickups are the most-stolen vehicles in two-thirds of states. (Learn more at Consumerist.com)


9. Can't tell satire from the real news? Facebook is testing a label. (Learn more at BBC)

10. A new kid's bike can grow with its rider. (Learn more at Gizmodo)

11. The best city for soccer moms (and dads) is Tacoma, Wash., thanks to high enthusiasm for the game and low prices for gas and snacks. (Learn more at NerdWallet)

 

Bonus video: After a few days of reflection, David Letterman has this tribute to his friend, Robin Williams:

 

Learn something this week? Mail your ideas to  11things@aarp.org, and we'll try to include your story next time.

On Twitter, we're using the hashtag #11things.

Let us read 11 Things to you:

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Images: Cupcake: Flickr/Jillwillrun; Woman looking out window: iStock/Squaredpixels; Chart $100: Courtesy of Tax Foundation; Children's drawings: Twins Early Development Study, King's College London; Woman yawning:  iStock/Skynesher; Women getting married: Flickr/D&K; The Onion: Screenshot; Bike: Courtesy of Doppelganger; Soccer chart: linked from NerdWallet

Music: Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orchestra plays Jimmie Lunceford and His Orchestra - "Blue Blazes" by Sy Oliver, Creative Commons, courtesy of Smithsonian Remix project.

>> Next: This Week in Boomer History: Me Decade ... Ryan's 5K K's ... 'Prague Spring' Ends

 

Also of Interest

• Peak Time of Day for 'Sexting' and Other Things We Didn't Know Last Week
• Are You a Viagra Wife?
• Fight fraud and ID theft with the AARP Fraud Watch Network.
• Join AARP: Savings, resources and news for your well-being

 

See the  AARP home page for deals, savings tips, trivia and more