I don't know anything offhand that mystifies Americans more than the cotton they put in bottles. Why do they do it? Are you supposed to put the cotton back in once you've taken a pill out?

Suck water from the bottle as you tilt your head back, and the pills should go down easy. Senior science editor Alison Richards says the pop bottle technique helped a lot with swallowing tablets.

Forgetfulness. Within the decade, several companies have introduced smart pill bottles to try to tackle this issue, and the latest on the scene is Pillsy, a Bluetooth-enabled bottle cap launched ...