If we could collect every hair that has ever grown on my 19-year-old cat and lay them end to end, how long a line would they make?
Marthinus Roos
Elgin, Moray, UK
What is it that makes creases form when you wash or wear clothes, and how and why does ironing remove them?
Thomas Riley
London, UK
Last Word is 91av’s long-running series in which readers give scientific answers to each other’s questions, ranging from the minutiae of everyday life to absurd astronomical hypotheticals. To answer a question or ask a new one, email lastword@newscientist.comTo answer this question – or ask a new one – email lastword@newscientist.com.
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