A minute can seem a considerable amount of time when you're waiting at the microwave door like a starved lion stalking its prey. A minute is forever when your legs are about to turn to soup on a treadmill; and as for being at work... well 60 seconds is a damn cruel eternity when it's the last few minutes of the day. We underestimate the power of the minute - you'd be surprised at what the world accomplishes by the time your microwave reaches zero. While you've been reading this intro, billions of chemical reactions have taken place in your body. BILLIONS. If you're reading this on the toilet... perhaps a few more. And if you're reading this having sex it's definitely about time you rethink your priorities. Come with us now on a journey through time and space, a sea of melting Dali clocks and enough annoying ticking to send even Dalai Lama over the edge. Here's 10 astonishing things that happen every 60 seconds...
10. 250 Babies Are Born
Anyone who has sat through the crotch-clenching roller coaster that is Channel 4's "One Born Every Minute", has seen enough already. We've established there's a baby born every minute in the UK - yes. We've also established we're now never having children, or going near a television ever again. The world is one never-ending production line of screams and tears, pushing out armies of tiny purple people. In the time it takes for you to brush your teeth on a morning, nearly 1000 new human beings have entered the world. Many factors affect birth rate in a country: female employment, poverty levels, social and religious beliefs and access to family planning. Not all of these newborns are lucky enough to enter a first world country with comfort, food and a stable roof over their head from day one. 113 of the children born every minute enter a world of poverty: 15 of which will suffer from birth defects. Something to think about, isn't it?
