Cine Sopaipleto

Paper cut image via Shutterstock

There are a couple things at play here, some involving the paper, some involving your skin.

For one thing, what part of your body comes in contact with paper the most? Right, the majority of paper cuts happen on the fingers and hands. Your hands are pretty complex sensory instruments, and they’re absolutely jam-packed with nerve fibers called nociceptors. These guys sense temperature, pressure and pain, and there are more of them per square inch in your hands and fingers than most other parts of your body. Injuries there are noticed much more than similar injuries elsewhere. The same small paper cut on a less nerve-dense area, such as, say, your leg, won’t send nearly as many pain signals to your brain.

To make matters worse, it’s not like you can just not use your hands for a few days after every paper cut. You’ve got stuff to touch and things to pick up, so while the cut heals, the skin keeps moving and the edges of the wound tend to get pulled apart, delaying healing and prolonging the pain.

All right, sure, your hands are very sensitive, but then why do paper cuts hurt more than some cuts made by other objects, like knives? Well, the blade of even a fairly dull knife tends to be more straight and sharp than the dull and flexible edge of a piece of paper. When a knife cuts your skin, its leaves a relatively clean cut compared to paper, which will flex a little and do more microscopic damage to the skin. Paper also makes a more shallow wound than most other cutting injuries. A shallow cut on the surface might only bleed a little, or not at all. Without a blood clot to protect them, the nerves around the cut are exposed to air and other irritants, which can make the pain more noticeable and longer lasting.

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We’ve looked at cakes inspired by movies and video games. Next up: kids’ books and characters!

1 & 2. Alice In Wonderland

Adults and children alike have always been mystified by the world of Alice in Wonderland. This cake, by Karen Portaleo of Highland Bakery, stands out from the crowd by incorporating so many iconic characters from the story.

The Tim Burton version was a little more adult than the original Disney classic, but there are still plenty of kids who love his darker version of Wonderland as well, and this cake, by Fatma Ozmen Metinel, perfectly captures the spirit of Burton’s world.

3. The Very Hungry Caterpillar

Cat of Cakes by Cat perfectly captured Eric Carle’s The Very Hungry Caterpillar. She even posed the book with the cake so you can compare the two.

4. The Giving Tree

If The Giving Tree made you cry as a youngster, then cutting into this perfect tribute to the book just might get you teary eyed as well. Thanks a lot to Tiffany’s Baking Company for reminding us just how depressing the end of this classic Shel Silverstein book was.

5. Yo Gabba Gabba

As they say in Gabbaland, My name is Jill—and I like to dance. At least I want to dance like a little girl when I see this great Yo Gabba Gabba cake, which was photographed by Jaysin Trevino.

6. Olivia

It’s almost as if Brendy’s Cakes knows exactly what Olivia would look like if she jumped out of the book and into the real world.

7. Curious George

The best thing about this cake, by Bellaman Desserts, is that it perfectly captures just how much trouble little George always finds himself in. After all, before the party has even started, he’s already managed to spill paint all over the cake and then leave paint-covered paw prints all over its sides. Good thing The Man With The Yellow Hat is always so forgiving.

8. Cars

While Lightning McQueen may have been the main character, Mater might be the most lovable character in the Cars series. This cake version of the redneck tow truck by Sweetbakes is a fitting tribute.

9. Kung Fu Panda

Something tells me that Jack Black would be proud if he saw this amazing cake by BCakeNY that is based on his character from the wonderful Dream Works films.

10. Adventure Time

Any fan of the Cartoon Network series will immediately recognize just how amazing this cake, by Little Cherry Cake Company, truly is. After all, it not only features Finn and a giant Jake, but also Princess Bubblegum, Ice King, Marceline, Beemo and more favorites. I do hope the back features Lumpy Space Princess and Lady Rainicorn though because they’re my favorite characters.

11. Clifford the Big Red Dog

If you were one of the millions of kids who grew up reading this series and watching the animated version on television, then you know just how perfect this cake by Sweetbakes is.

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