Appended

Some scientists think they have figured out the real job of the troublesome and seemingly useless appendix: it produces and protects good germs for your gut. Now if they could only determine the purpose of your brother.

For generations the appendix has been dismissed as superfluous, as doctors figured it had no function and surgeons removed them routinely. But despite people living fine without them, this new theory has come from surgeons and immunologists at Duke University.

The function of the appendix seems related to the massive amount of bacteria populating the human digestive system, according to their study. Truth be told, there are more bacteria than human cells in the typical body, but most are good and help digest food. When bacteria in the intestines die or are purged by diseases like cholera or dysentery, the appendix's job is to reboot the digestive system in that case.

Acting as a storehouse for bacteria, its location just below the normal one-way flow of food and germs in the large intestine helps support the theory. When infected, the appendix can turn deadly, but the organ acts like a bacteria factory to cultivate good germs. Similar though is now going into research into the tonsils, another oft removed part of the body which may perform a similar function.