Vincent linked to this in the
hoax forum, and I thought it was bizarre enough that I should post it here where I can add a poll to it.
The story is that 'Stephan M' lost his clothes overboard while on a canoe trip, so he had to wear the same things for the next six days. When he got home he took off his sweater and discovered that a seedling had sprouted in his belly button lint. He took photos of it as proof. Now to me this seems like a joke. I think he just stuck a leafy twig in his belly button and started snapping photos. But would it even be theoretically possible for this to happen? Wouldn't the sweater rubbing against his skin damage a delicate seedling and prevent it from growing? I think so. I also think that the sweaty, salty environment would kill a plant. But others might disagree.
Comments
First, if the person was wearing a sweater, shirt, or whatever all or most of the time, the sprout would not have green leaves. Chlorophyll does not develop in the absence of light.
Second, the sprout would not grow straight out from the stomach unless the person had lain on his back continually for a few weeks. Instead, it would grow upward, toward the light.
So this is just a photo-enhanced version of an old joke.
He said the reason the seed was able to sprout was b/c of his loose-knit sweater. BUT...He's a big fat liar.
But that seems like an excessive amount of "belly button lint" to me.