| Facts: human |
| Exist Human lives aprx 1 mo. wthout food; 11 dys no H2O; 10 dys no sleep. Sneeze Long regarded danger. Greeks feared could accidentally dispel soul; tried to hold back; greeted wth good fortune chants. Romans: it dispelled illness-causing spirits. Hold back--cause illness, benedict'ns needed. About to: urged wth "Good luck to you!"; congratulate after. 1500s papal fiat 'cause of Italy's deadly plague wth sneeze symptom; urged healthy people to pray "God bless you" after sneeze. Can't keep eyes open during sneeze. Sneeze from bright light Photic sneeze reflex; only after adapt to dark for 5+ min., suddenly exposed to brigh light. Affects estimated 10-25% of people. Probably inherited; maybe accidental nerve signal crossing of normal sneezing, pupil dilation. Saturday night (hay) fever Night time, particularly an hour 'fore midnight, is the worst time for hay fever 'cause tiny pollen fragments seep from grass/plants in early morning, lofted high into atmosphere by heat currents of midday (sink earthward at 11 p.m.+ .) Exacerbated by long haired people who go out at night (acts as a collection net.) Coughs & sneezes are powerful A cough produces a gust of about 300 mph. Sneezes also produce hurricane-force wind averaging 75-100 mph. Yawn Roman parents covered baby's yawns to protect soul from escaping; thought infants died in greater #s than adults 'cause couldn't cover mouths. Hearing Humans distinguish direct'n of 2 sounds if originate at least 45 degrees apart; dogs (movable ears) if 11 degrees apart. Aroma A human brain devotes 3-fourths sq. in. for smell; dog 10 sq. in.; shark 24 sq. ft.; rabbit--area as large as its skin. Human has 40 mil. olfactory nerves that can detect traces of some chemicals--a 4-hundred billionth gram of methyl mercaptan in a liter of air (sickly smelling chemical added to odorless natural gas to make it detectable.) Seeing double Italian journal: moms sometimes show preference for a twin, dads for other. Finland: studied 234 twin pairs, age 0-21. Mom's favorite more likely 1st to speak, smarter, sleep difficulties, psychosomatic adolescence symptoms. Dad's favorite likely physically oriented, less accident prone, insist that other should dress differently & shouldn't always be together. Identical twins Fingerprints are unique. Siamese twins "Siamese twins" term from famous pair of 1800s twins from Siam. Brotohers Chang & Eng, at chest, brought to US by P.T. Barnum. Married Sarah & Adelaide, unattached sisters; 22 children. Died wthin hrs of each other. If born today, might be surgically separated. Twins, 2 fathers Documented cases having twins having different fathers, including different races; conceived in close proximity. Recently, unrelated "twins:" in vitro of own child & embryo accidentally implanted. Mother/fetus circulation Mother's circulation entirely separate from fetus; no blood exchange; both can have different blood types wthout problems (except Rh incompatibility). Mother provides minerals, vitamins, oxygen, protein...to placenta via her blood. Fetus' blood circulates through placenta, picks these substances up. Births in India Births in India each yr: greater than entire Australian populat'n. Hunza Hunza people in NW Kashmir reportedly haven't had cancer; also have unusual longevity. 1st humans homo habilis Means "handy man;" evidence of small tools--hand axes, other stone and/or bone tools. Neanderthals Dined almost exclusively on meat (chemical analysis of 28k yr old bones in Croatia.) Extinct: maybe too meat dependent if prey disappeared or had to share hunting grounds wth modern humans. Modern humans origin Traced to 1 small African group not independently in several world areas, according to Jorde, Human U of Utah Genetics. Europe/Asia colonized by Africans 100k yrs ago. At 1 time, species nearly extinct, fewer than 10k. Swim cramps Amer. Red Cross: no scientific evidence proving eat/swim produces cramps. Caused by fatigue/chilling, not digest'n or body focusing energies on digest'n, drawing blood from muscles. Long-distance swimmers eat while in water to avoid fatigue/muscle cramps. Baby steps Infants recognize tools make difficult tasks easier. Researchers placed towel on floor, put toy on far end of it. Pull on towel to get toy by age 6 mo. Hearing test If talk on phone in noisy room, apt to hear words better if put receiver to right ear; right ear wired more directly to part of left side brain that processes language. Words given to r/l ears when wearing earphones: right better understood. Tap right finger while repeating someone's words; using right finger uses some of language-processing area on left side brain; do better by tapping left finger. The taste of victory Women finish chewing food sooner than men because women have better tongue muscle control. Women have better peripheral vision because they have more off-center receptors in retinas; can see better in low light. Men have a different concentration of receptors, require a more face-on view to see things as well. Women hear high-frequency sounds better; can detect diluted tastes better. Chickenpox If you had chickenpox, someone else's shingles rash can't reinfect you. If haven't had chickenpox & exposed to someone wth shingles, can get chickenpox. Cowpox Cowpox virus: from milk cows & cats; similar to smallpox, much milder. If had it, can't get smallpox. 1880s Jenner noticed milkmaids didn't get smallpox; led to smallpox vaccine & others. Infuenza Spread largely by droplet infect'n--cough/sneeze, virus airborne, inhaled by other. Cold/wet weather: spend more time in enclosed areas together, so more easily pass virus. Equatorial countries don't get very cold, influenza occurs yr-round, especially rainy season. Family traits Hand to hold phone to ear: likely same as others in family, no matter if r/l handed. Thumb on top with thumbs crossed over folded hands: passed on culturally, usually same among kids in family. Treating a fever Winthrop Univ. Hosp, N.Y., surveyed 161 drs.; most start treatment when young patient's temp is 101. Half alternate between acetaminophen/ibuprofen--a third said they were following Amer. Academy of Ped. recommendation. But academy never issued advisory. No definitive studies on best way to treat fever in children/adults. Ice cream headache Cold substance hits mouth roof group of nerves. Nerves go into shock, send message to brain, head aches. Sip warm water right away to get rid of pain. Sorbitol & infants Most infants start drinking fruit juice by 6 mo.--fine for most infants/juices. Digestive system isn't fully developed; some have hard time absorbing sorbitol--metabolic rate & physical activity increases. Juice with most sorbitol: pear juice. White grape juice: probably safest to start. Prescriptions of champions You probably choose your breakfast cereal in the supermarket because you like the price, the nutrition information or the taste. But when your doctor writes a prescription, she may be making a similar purchase decision for you among lots of drugs that do the same thing. What influenced her decision? A group of pharmacists from the University of South Australia studied the way drug sales representatives promote drugs to physicians. As reported in the Australia New Zealand Journal of Medicine, the methods aren't that different from selling cereal. The sales representatives were friendly, always left samples and little gifts, and usually said that some really famous doctor was using the drug for all her patients. Soap Lady is soap S. 22nd St., downtown Philadelphia, Mutter Museum, inside College of Physicians/Surgeons (has bizarre med oddities.) Obese woman decomposed underground into waxy gray adipocere; purchased by museum, $7.50, when Phil. cemetery was moved, 1875. Chemical properties in soil turned corpses into soap. Soap Man (same graveyard) at Smithsonian. Hands down it's soap Rinsing with water alone removes 29% of the dirt on hands. Soap depends on the brand; average removes 75-80%. Civil War Last Confederate widow: Alberta Martin, Alabama. Last Union widow: Gertrude Janeway, died at age 93, Jan. 2003; age 18 when married John Janeway, 81 at the time. Ice diet Move up--north or higher altitude, say researchers at Maastricht Univ., Netherlands. Cold temp. or high altitudes help reduce food intake. Body doesn't feel as much of an appetite. High altitudes--less oxygen reduces appetite, energy intake; people living at high altitudes have low body masses. Fingernail growth Average .02"/week. Hand washing Water alone removes 29% of dirt. Effects of soap depends on brand; average removes 75-80% of dirt in a single washing. Back pain of children with backpacks Children start having back pains when their backpacks reach 20% of their body weight. Chilling Facts Human body is more sensitive to cold than warmth 'cause cold can more quickly damage vital organs. Most cold receptors are closer to the skin's surface, especially found in the face (especially tip of nose, eyelids, lips, forehead.) Fewer receptors for warmth, lie deeper under the skin than cold receptors (except tip of tongue.) Skin must be warmed 3-4 degrees to be felt; drop of 1-2 degrees is felt. Little Shape of Horrors Women who were trying to stick to diets, weres shown a movie either about travel, comedy, or horror. Then they all went to a buffet: The women who saw the travel movie ate properly, sticking to their diets. The women who saw the comedy ate a bit more than they were supposed to. The women who saw the horror movie ate the most. The zodiac effect Neuropsychobiology suggests that the season of birth influences chances of having a specific psychiatric problem. People born in winter or spring have a 10% greater chance schizophrenia. Born in Jan., Feb., or Mar. show a higher incidence of bipolar disorder & depression. Born in May have highest rate of seasonal affective disorder. Other disorders show less of a pattern. Likelihood of an eating or anxiety disorder is about the same, regardless of when you're born. California dreaming Jet travel from west to east is more exhausting than the other way around, mostly 'cause flying east interferes more with dreaming. At the beginning of a night's sleep, dreams are brief--20 minutes at most,--widely spaced --1 every 90 min. As morning approaches & the brain prepares for wakefulness, dreams pop into awareness almost continuously, apparently to increase blood volume, body temp,&adrenaline levels. That's why travel from CA to NY is so tiring; since eastbound travelers have to wake up at what seems an earlier time, they won't get as much time for rich, world-orienting dreams at the end of sleep cycles. Preemie pain Clinical Journal of Pain: when preemie jumps, twitches or squirms, usually not sign of discomfort; it's normal movement. Spreads fingers or extends legs is sign of pain. Raises eyebrows, doesn't indicate immediate pain, but suggests had been in pain within past 24 hrs, still recovering. |
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| This page revised 2-4-06 |