Google Earth prooves cows are secretly magnets

Posted at 12:30 PM Aug 28, 2008

By Bonnie Ruberg

Moo. OK, now that that's out of my system.

According to Wired News, German biologists studying shots taken of cattle and deer by Google Earth have discovered that those less-cuddly-than-they-look animals have a natural sense of direction. Thanks to their inborn herd instincts, they tend to stand with their bodies aligned perfectly north/south. It's like they're secretly magnets, or compasses, or cud-chewing GPS machines. And you know what that means. The next time you're lost driving past a field of cows, check out which way they're facing and you'll find north. I think.

What's really cool about this discovery isn't how cattle would make natural adventurers (yeah, they look like they'll get on that real fast) it's how a web technology like Google Earth made it possible for us to figure out something so low-tech -- something we'd never be able to guess without shots of cows from outer space. Who would've thought cows were the future? The furry, adorable, milk-filled future...