animal rights activist
One in four Brits say they are curious about the taste of human flesh (Reuters)

Britain is a nation of curious cannibals, with 24% of people saying they would be interested to find out what human meat tastes like.

A survey by the TV channel Eden to mark the launch of its Pop Science season found that 14% of people would also allow a doctor to take a flesh sample from their bodies so the aroma could be analysed and a 'human burger' created for them to sample.

The survey also found that 69% of adults were open to the idea of using faeces to power their homes and think it could be a good solution for energy shortages.

Eden went on to ask people about the science questions they would most like answered, such as if you sneeze with your eyes open, do they pop out of their sockets?

Findings showed that 24% of Brits have tested the theory, with 70% saying they could not keep their eyes open and 24% saying they did not pop out, disproving the theory.

The most popular question was whether a coin falling from the top of the Empire State Building could kill someone - the answer to which was no.

"A coin falling from the Empire State Building cannot kill a pedestrian and is unlikely to even penetrate the skin," Eden ruled.

Coconut blood plasma

"When an object falls to earth it gains speed, eventually reaching the point where it's weight matches the drag from the air and it stops accelerating. That's called its Terminal Velocity. The mass of a penny coin is only about one gram, so its terminal velocity would only be about 67mph."

Another popular question was if a person could survive in a falling lift if they jumped at the moment it hit the ground. The answer was "probably not", as although jumping will lessen the impact, it would be too small a difference to have any effect.

Eden also discovered the scientific facts that Brits found most interesting. The top vote went to a discovery made during WWII, when doctors realised they could use the liquid inside young coconuts as a substitute for blood plasma.

Another top fact was that if the population of China walked past you in single file, the line would never end because of the rate of reproduction.

Adrian Wills, general manager of UKTV's Eden, said: "There are many strange and obscure science-related questions we want answered, but are too scared to ask. The aim of Eden's Pop Science season is to test out some commonly held beliefs and many of the weirder questions you might discuss down the pub.

"Here at Eden, we want to put the fun back into science and no matter how trivial the question, to encourage curious minds to never stop wondering at our world."

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