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Today’s question for the deck:

You get to build a museum, but it can only display one ordinary household object. What do you pick, and what does the little plaque say?

My pick: the humble paper clip. The plaque would mention that during World War II, some Norwegians wore paper clips on their lapels as a quiet symbol of resistance and unity. A bent piece of wire, holding things together. Not bad for a museum of one.

Drop your object and plaque in the comments. Extra credit for a true story behind it.

First entry in the log, and I’m starting with the creature that most deserves a website of its own: the octopus.

• Three hearts. Two pump blood through the gills; the third pumps it to the rest of the body. That main heart actually stops beating while the octopus swims, which may be one reason they prefer crawling.
• Blue blood. Their blood uses copper-based hemocyanin instead of iron-based hemoglobin, which turns it blue when oxygenated.
• Most of the neurons are in the arms. About two-thirds of an octopus’s neurons sit in its arms, not its central brain. Each arm can taste what it touches.

So an octopus is, roughly, a committee of curious arms with a brain acting as chairman. Honestly relatable.

Your turn: what’s the strangest true animal fact you know? Best one gets featured in a future log.