The 5 Second Rule

I had the Pleasure of waiting tables for a good 15 years of my life. I am no stranger to the 5 second rule.  Essentially, the 5 second rule states that if something drops onto the floor and is retrieved within 5 seconds it is okay to serve or eat. I am not certain who invented this rule but what is for certain is that the 5 second rule is popular in restaurants and even homes around the globe. In fact, research conducted in 2003 by Jillian Clarke states that upwards of 50% of adult men and 70% of adult women know about and employ the 5 second rule.

It looks as though a man called Paul Dawson and his research group over at Clemson University have proved some validity in regards to the 5 second rule:

"On surfaces that had been contaminated eight hours earlier, slices of bologna and bread left for five seconds took up from 150 to 8,000 bacteria. Left for a full minute, slices collected about 10 times more than that from the tile and carpet, though a lower number from the wood."

Well who would have thought there was actually truth to the 5 second rule? Read more about the 5 second rule as well as other assorted oddities over at the Freakonomics blog (great book by the way).