Have you ever thrown anything out by accident and had to look through the garbage for it? Uggh! What a mess! But could you believe that some scientists search through bags of disgustingly smelly garbage every day in their scientific research? Yep, it’s stinky, but true! What are these scientists looking for? Answers to their questions, and they have lots that can be solved by the mystery of what is in a garage bag! For example, scientists want to know what makes up the most waste in a landfill (the place where garbage is stored), so that they can try to reduce how much of this product people throw out. This would help reduce pollution enormously. People used to think that diapers made up most of the landfill, but scientists have discovered that they make up only 2% of the garbage we throw out. Instead, coming in at a whopping 45%, is paper! And of course paper is totally recyclable. This means society really has to increase its recycling education to get the message out to people to “Stop throwing out your paper!”

Scientists have also learned some crazy facts by investigating garbage. Did you know that the average hot dog can last 24 years in the garbage before it rots? Wow! That’s a pretty long shelf life! They’ve also found out that the people who read the National Enquirer the most also own a cat. Hmm… how would you like to search through trash as a science project?  Maybe not! But there is an interesting science project you can do that studies nature’s best-known waste consumers—worms! For the dirt on worms and to learn more about these fascinating little critters, check out Which Way Is Up, a Life Science experiment in the Life Sciences Ten Experiments book. Click here for details. You’ll find out that worms have got brains and know what’s what, even if they do like to eat nature’s garbage, and human trash too!