How well do cats understand human language? Can they recognize when they’re being called by name? Can they detect angry or loving tones? Are there certain sounds they recognize better than words? Just think about what this means for cat owners everywhere… Have you ever sat on the sofa with your cat on your lap, just wishing you could actually tell her the level of affection you felt at that moment… using your own words? Have you ever wished to have true, detailed conversations like a parent would have with his or her own child? Have you ever desired to instruct or even discipline your cat without using a harsh voice , so that you could change behaviors without projecting negative emotions? Not only can cats reportedly understand 25 to 35 human words , but they can also perceive and respond to human emotions . For example: Recent research into cat communication has shown that: Cats (79% of them in one study) do “social referencin
Vladeep/shutterstock If you’ve been placing the flat underside of your loaf on the cutting board and the curved top facing the ceiling, bad news—you’re among the masses of improper bread slicers. Somehow knowing that we’ve been slicing bread wrong for generations means using the phrase “the best thing since sliced bread” seems kind of wrong now too. If you’re wondering how bread can even be improperly sliced, it comes down to what makes slicing easiest and least likely to damage the loaf—and your hands. “It’s easier to slice bread on its side because the crust tends to be harder on the bottom,” shares Kevin Chun, executive chef at The Williamsburg Hotel and Brooklyn Bread Lab. “You want to keep the slice intact, so by carving from the crispier end, it allows for a cleaner cut.” Gasp! Does that mean the heart-shaped ridges at the top aren’t a guiding point for our knives? You bet. If you think Kevin’s advice is unusual, you should know that top chefs across the globe share the side