By now you probably know that the world is a much scarier place than you thought it was when you were a kid. We all start out seeing things through rose colored glasses and this changes rapidly as we age. Depending on how introspective you are, you may or may not have ever considered today’s topic regarding the scariest things on Earth.
For those of you who like to spend time lost in your thoughts, we are almost sure that you have already asked yourselves, “what is the scariest thing in the world?” Questions like this go right along with “what is the worst way to die?” or “what is the most painful experience you could possibly ever have?” While these aren’t exactly uplifting questions, and they certainly won’t help you sleep at night, they can be interesting in a very twisted kind of way.
For those of you who have never given this any thought, that’s good. You are probably better off for it. Feel free, however, to continue reading so that you can find out exactly what you’re not missing. Or at least you can shake up your mundane day a little bit. So let’s get to it, these are 25 Scariest Things On Earth You Probably Haven’t Realized.
Elephant's foot
No, not a real elephant’s foot. We’re talking about a radioactive lava flow beneath the Chernobyl reactor. It is shaped like an elephant’s foot and just looking at it can kill you due to the radiation. In fact, most images we have of it were taken by robots.
Hogweed
Just touching this plant can give you third degree burns.
Australia
dropbear
The drop bears are particularly vicious (google it).
Locked-in Syndrome
nightmare
Imagine being trapped in your body, fully conscious, but unable to move. A truly frightening medical condition typically caused by stroke, patients are fully aware of their surroundings but are unable to respond in any way outside of limited eye-movement.
Nuclear warheads
They have gotten so much bigger since Hiroshima and Nagasaki. As if that’s not bad enough, it’s estimated that nine countries possess up to 15,000 nuclear weapons combined. Yikes!
Rabies
Except for a few people (all since 2004), nobody in history has ever survived rabies without a vaccine. Nobody.
Asteroids
If you knew how many near misses Earth has had, this would
Supervolcanoes
Yellowstone is actually a volcano big enough to destroy almost everything on Earth.
The deep sea
There are some crazy looking creatures down there: angler fish, goblin sharks, giant isopods…
Ice Crevasses
One minute you’re there, the next minute you’re gone forever. Oftentimes, crevasses are completely covered in snow, kind of like a snow sinkhole.
Giant Squids
They have eyes the size of basketballs, and reach lengths of up to 43 feet, which is slightly larger than a city bus.
The suicide plant
Known as Dendrocnide moroides, just brushing against this Australian tree causes so much pain that people have been said to kill themselves. And not just people – horses and other animals have allegedly run themselves off of cliffs following stings.
Amoebas that eat your brain
These brain-eating amoebas are called Naegleria fowleri, and they live in warm freshwater. Be careful.
Vampire fish
Never urinate into the Amazon. If you do, vampire fish (candiru) might end up swimming into your bladder.
Fatal Familial Insomnia
People with this disease lose the ability to sleep. There is no cure, and most patients die within 18 months.
Resistance to anti-biotics
If your doctor tells you to finish the antibiotics…finish them. Even if you already feel better. If you don’t, the remaining bacteria will develop immunity. Many already have.
Aneurysms
Even the healthiest 20 year old can die in seconds due to an aneurysm. Be glad you woke up today.
