WEBVTT - Should You Really Punch an Animal in the Nose If Attacked?

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to brain Stuff production of iHeart Radio. Hey brain Stuff,

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<v Speaker 1>Lauren vocal bomb here. Let's say something has gone horribly

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<v Speaker 1>wrong and you're in a physical fight with another human person.

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<v Speaker 1>If that person punched you in the face, would it

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<v Speaker 1>make you back off? Some might say that getting punched

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<v Speaker 1>in the nose hurts like unreasonably so, and that they

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<v Speaker 1>would disengage. Others might argue that it would merely incite

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<v Speaker 1>their ire. After the initial shock, adrenaline would kick in

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<v Speaker 1>and then make even quicker work of their opponent. When

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<v Speaker 1>it comes to animal attacks, the answer to whether a

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<v Speaker 1>punch to the nose would stop an attack pretty much

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<v Speaker 1>lies with what kind of animal you're considering punching. And

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<v Speaker 1>let's just make it clear right now that you should

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<v Speaker 1>do all you can to avoid provoking an animal attack,

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<v Speaker 1>and that if you're not being attacked, punching any kind

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<v Speaker 1>of animals means for admittance into the special hell. But

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<v Speaker 1>that aside, let's talk about a few different animals that

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<v Speaker 1>have a reputation for needing a good stick in the

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<v Speaker 1>nose and whether that would actually help save your skin.

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<v Speaker 1>The shark is the animal perhaps most commonly singled out

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<v Speaker 1>for a defensive sucker punch. The rumor is that a good,

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<v Speaker 1>hard punch to the snout is going to send a

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<v Speaker 1>shark reeling. There are a couple of problems with this, though.

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<v Speaker 1>One is that it's super hard to punch anything underwater,

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<v Speaker 1>making a good dump on the nose pretty unrealistic. Another issue,

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<v Speaker 1>while shark noses are sensitive, their gills and eyes are

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<v Speaker 1>much more vulnerable. Punching one in the nose probably wouldn't

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<v Speaker 1>do enough damage to stun it, and you've got the

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<v Speaker 1>added problem of needing to get a little too close

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<v Speaker 1>for comfort to its enormous gaping jaws. So perhaps a

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<v Speaker 1>no on punching sharks. Unless it's actively and aggressively up

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<v Speaker 1>in your face. Your best bet would generally be to

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<v Speaker 1>swim away as quickly and quietly as possible, and keep

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<v Speaker 1>in mind that we're not sharks preferred snacks. They usually

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<v Speaker 1>approach humans out of curiosity rather than predation. Another suggested

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<v Speaker 1>attacker for which a punch in the nose might work bears.

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<v Speaker 1>In many cases, it's best to play dead around a bear.

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<v Speaker 1>If they're just curious, or if a mother is defending

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<v Speaker 1>her cubs. Playing dead means they'll likely lose interest in

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<v Speaker 1>you and amble on. But it's also certainly appropriate to

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<v Speaker 1>try to fight off an aggressive bear. And while it's

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<v Speaker 1>not a sure thing, punching or hitting a bear is

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<v Speaker 1>certainly going to help you fight it off, So go

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<v Speaker 1>ahead and clock it in the nose if it's absolutely necessary.

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<v Speaker 1>Of course, the animal that's really going to be useful

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<v Speaker 1>to punch is one that has a wildly sensitive snout.

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<v Speaker 1>So we present to you the animal that it would

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<v Speaker 1>be most useful to wallop in the nose if it

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<v Speaker 1>were attacking you, the star nosed mole. With one thousand

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<v Speaker 1>sensory neurons and its snout it's extremely sensitive to touch. However,

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<v Speaker 1>you'll almost certainly never need to defend yourself from one.

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<v Speaker 1>Although they look like creatures out of a Giermuo del

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<v Speaker 1>Toro film, the star nosed mole is the size of

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<v Speaker 1>a mouse and way more interested in eating worms than

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<v Speaker 1>in bothering you. Today's episode written by Kate Kirshner and

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<v Speaker 1>produced by Tyler. Playing brain Stuff is a production of

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