Researchers believe that cats’ purring begins in their brains. Repetitive brain waves send messages to muscles in the throat, causing them to vibrate rapidly. While cats typically purr when they are content, they can also purr when they’re stressed. Furthermore, domestic cats aren’t the only purrers. Big cats, like mountain lions also purr.

Black cats are just as sweet and lovable as any other color of cat, and there is no evidence of them bringing bad luck. Ancient Egyptians, in fact, revered black cats because they resembled their goddess Bastet, who stood for love, beauty, fertility, cats, dance, music and war. Bastet was initially portrayed as a lioness, but later as a black domestic cat.

Cats sleep for 15–20 hours a day. It is thought wild cats evolved this sleeping pattern so they could conserve energy for their quick-fire hunting expeditions. As domestic cats evolved, despite no longer needing to catch their own food, they apparently saw no reason to cut back on their sleeping time.

The fastest domestic cat is the Egyptian mau, a lean, athletic cat that can sprint at up to 30 mph. Tracing its lineage back 3,000 years, the Egyptian mau is a highly intelligent and affectionate tabby cat.

Cats have tiny scent glands in various places on their bodies—in their cheeks, chin, all four feet, the top of their heads, and the base of their tails. When these areas rub up against something, the glands release pheromones, marking the rubbed area as a space that’s safe and comfortable.

Sadly, cats can’t taste sweetness; they’re believed to be the only mammal with this deficiency. They don’t have the right taste buds to detect sweets, but many will still gladly slurp down a bowl of ice cream—it’s the fat they’re looking for.

Cats don’t see well up close. They can see distance very well, and they have excellent night vision and peripheral vision, but they’d definitely need reading glasses if they were to crack open a Shakespearean play, for example.