Sacrifice Facts

The Aztecs and other Mesoamerican peoples believed powerful gods dwelled within volcanoes. To appease these deities, they performed human sacrifices—sometimes throwing victims directly into volcanic craters.

At the Pakistan Stock Exchange, goats have been sacrificed to ward off computer glitches and technical problems that disrupt trading.

The pea aphid can rupture its own body when attacked, releasing sticky defensive fluids that kill both itself and the predator while protecting nearby relatives.

When his sister Kim was diagnosed with leukemia in 1991, Keanu Reeves put his career on hold, sold his home to move closer to her, and spent a decade cooking her meals, cleaning her house, and personally administering her medications. Kim told PEOPLE magazine in 1995: "My brother is my prince." She survived.