Humans can turn off their ears, scientists at University College London discovered. Tests led by Professor Nilli Lavie concluded that humans can opt to deflect unwanted sounds, just like they can close their eyes if they don't want to see something.
This news was passed on to me by reader Harry Blixer, who said: "CLEARLY this professor is not married." I had to agree.
If Professor Lavie was married, she would know that ALL husbands turn their ears on and off several times a day, depending on (a) whether conversations are interrupting sport on TV; (b) whether the subject being discussed is beneficial ("Have you fixed the toilet yet?" being an example of a non-beneficial topic), or (c) whether the question is one of those unsafe-to-answer female ones, such as "Tell me honestly, am I sexier than Megan Fox frolicking on a beach with Jessica Alba?"
Once again, scientists have wasted millions discovering what the rest of us already know.
