postaday – Page 29 – Sciencelens

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August 15, 2012August 17, 2012

Relaxation Day and the world’s most relaxing room

Feeling a bit rushed and stressed out? Modern life getting the better of you? Then today is especially for you – August 15th is Relaxation Day.

Some years ago, researchers at the University of Hertfordshire’s Health and Human Sciences Research Institute, led by Professor Richard Wiseman, did a study examining walking speeds around the world, and found that people’s lives are becoming ever more stressful and hurried. I am sure that comes as no surprise to anyone – we are all way too familiar with the stresses of modern life, with its ever increasing responsibilities, information overload, and the like. Less and less time for sauntering, it seems.

Anyway, what is interesting about this story is what Professor Wiseman and his team did next – they went on to develop what they consider to be, scientifically speaking, the ‘world’s most relaxing room‘.

Opened to the public at a 2008 Showcase held by the University of Hertfordshire, the room consisted of soft matting on which you could lie back, with your head resting on a lavender-scented pillow. The room was furthermore bathed in ‘calming glade-like green light’, with a ‘completely clear artificial blue sky’ overhead. A specifically composed soundtrack was played – ‘music with a slow and distinct rhythm, low frequency notes, and no sudden changes in tempo’, also featuring a solo soprano voice, ‘chosen for the soothing properties of the human voice’, a ‘Tibetan singing bowl, used in meditation’ and a string ensemble.

All the features in the room were specifically selected based on scientific knowledge related to stress and relaxation. A subdued green light, for example, is supposed to enhance the production of dopamine in the brain, which has a calming effect, and the completely clear blue sky creates a ‘mild sense of sensory deprivation’ that helps you turn your attention inward and away from daily stresses.

Interesting concept, but to be honest, my idea of the ultimate relaxation space would rather be a grassy hill in the mountains, where I can lie back, out of cellphone contact, with cloudy skies overhead and no sounds other than a stream trickling in the background and the occasional bird chirping. And if this moment can happen after a day of hard walking or running in the mountains, even better. I bet it will beat the world’s most relaxing room any day…

Bliss… And very necessary! I think I need to start planning that getaway weekend pronto.

I am curious – what would your ‘ultimate relaxation space’ look like?

August 14, 2012August 17, 2012

Celebrating World Lizard Day – prehistoric looks and surreal abilities

Today we celebrate World Lizard Day. Yes, you read correctly – it seems there actually is such a day! Then again, if there’s a World Snake Day, why shouldn’t there be a World Lizard Day?

While there is a huge variety of lizards in the world (more than 5600 species, I believe) we only have a small subset of geckos and skinks down here in New Zealand – some 60 species in total. Well, at least we have some, unlike snakes, which we don’t have at all.

wire_lizard — African wire-art lizard. Lizards are often depicted in African and South American art.
(© All Rights Reserved)

Lizards are a strange bunch. Even though many of them (like the bearded dragon) look really scary, they’re mostly harmless to humans. Except for the Komodo Dragon, of course. Growing to sizes in excess of 3m, they’ve been known to stalk and attack humans – definitely a thought that could give me some sleepless nights.

The more I learn about lizards, the more surreal I find them. And it’s not just their prehistoric looks – they are blessed with some decidedly odd skills too.

Some lizards, like the chameleon, can change colour. While it is to some extent done for camouflage, the main purpose of this is actually to signal its physiological condition and intentions to other lizards – they can for example show brighter, more aggressive colours when angered, while displaying lighter, multi-coloured patterns when courting. This colour-changing is done using specialised cells called chromatophores, containing pigments in their cytoplasm which can be voluntarily set to different intensities by the chameleon.

Chameleons can also use their tongues to reel in food from a distance of more than two and a half times their body length, by shooting their tongues out of their mouths at high speed. They can do this because their tongues are equipped with powerful, super-contracting muscles that are unique among back-boned animals. The tip of the tongue is covered in thick mucus that sticks to the prey and allows the chameleon to pull its food straight into it’s mouth. Quite useful for a quick take-away snack!

Equally strange, when you think about it, is the fact that many lizards can voluntarily sever their tails when facing danger – an act known as autotomy (from the Greek auto = “self-” and tomy = “severing”) or self-amputation. Even after it has been severed, the tail continues to wriggle, distracting the lizard’s attacker. Amazingly, the lizard can partially regenerate it’s tail over a period of a few weeks (even though the new tail will contain cartilage rather than bone, and may be a different colour to the rest of it’s body).

Even more surreal – and this really gets me – when threatened, some species of horned lizard can actually squirt blood from their eyes! This action, called autohaemorrhaging, not only confuses predators, but the blood also tastes bad thanks to the chemicals it contains. The squirting is done by restricting the blood flow away from the head, so blood pressure inside the head increases, rupturing tiny blood vessels in the sinuses near the eyelids. This bizzare act can be repeated several times, and the blood can be squirted a distance of more than 4 feet.

Honestly, a prehistoric-looking, blood-squirting, self-amputating, colour changing creature with a tongue twice it’s body length – I wouldn’t be able to make that up even if I wanted to! Surely the stuff of science fiction fantasy, and more than worthy of a special day of celebration.

August 13, 2012August 17, 2012

Viva la difference – celebrating Left-Handers Day

So, today it’s a shout out to you if you’re one of those people who cannot help doing things a little differently – it’s Left-Handers Day!

Being left-handed is not always easy in a world designed for right-handers. Lefties, who make up about 10% of the world population, are continuously having to either contort themselves or get really innovative, being forced to use all sorts of right-handed gadgets and tools. But then again, that is what makes them feel just that little bit extra special, like being part of an exclusive, secret club.

So why are some people left-handed, some right-handed, and a very small group fully ambidextrous? No one knows for sure, but there are many theories on the matter, including that it may be genetic – a team of researchers from the Wellcome Trust Centre for Human Genetics at the University of Oxford, believe that they have discovered a gene that influences the chance of being left handed. The gene, called LRRTM1, seems to modify the development of asymmetry in the brain. According to the researchers, the ‘normal’ brain pattern, where the left-hand side of the brain controls speech and language, while the right-hand side controls emotion, is often reversed in left-handers, and LRRTM1 seems to control this development.

The LRRTM1 gene also seems to be associated with a slight increase in certain mental illnesses, like schizophrenia, but that’s another story.

Being a minority group that is said to be, statistically speaking, more intelligent than average, it’s not surprising that left-handers should enjoy collecting theories, statistics and research related to their lefthandedness. No wonder then, that a plethora of websites exist, dedicated to interesting leftie stats and theories.

One of the more interesting theories I’ve come across is that lefties appear to be more easy to scare than the rest of us. Researchers from the Queen Margaret University in Edinburgh exposed a group of volunteers to an eight minute clip from a scary movie (Silence of the Lambs), and then tested them for symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). According to study leader, Dr Carolyn Cloudhary, “The prevalence of post traumatic stress disorder is almost double in left handers compared to right handers (…) It is apparent the two sides of the brain have different roles in PTSD and the right hand-side of the brain seems to be involved in fear. In people who are left handed, the right hand side of their brain is dominant, so it may have something to do with that.”

Hmm, definitely something to remember that the next time you want to play a practical joke on your favourite leftie friend!

To all the left-handers out there – the innovators, the scaredy-cats, the smarty-pants, the insomniacs, the dyslexics, the alcoholics, the multi-taskers, the creatives, the politicians, the magicians – have a great Left-Handers Day!

August 12, 2012August 17, 2012

Celebrating IBM PC Day

This day marks the release, 31 years ago in 1981, of the very first IBM Personal Computer (PC) model 5150.

IBM_pc_5150 — The original IBM PC. (R de Rijcke, Wikimedia Commons)

Developed in less than a year, using existing off-the-shelf components, it proved a runaway success in the small business market, and launched the era of the personal computer. The IBM PC used an operating system developed by Microsoft, helping to establish Microsoft’s dominance in the in the PC market.

Specifications of the original IBM PC included an Intel 8080 processor with a processing speed of 4.77 MHz, 16-64K memory and data storage consisting of 5.25″ floppy drives, cassette tape and (later on) a hard disk.

Even though the term “personal computer” wasn’t first coined by IBM (it was used as early as 1972 in reference to the Xerox PARC Alto), the success and prevalence of the IBM product resulted in the term PC referring specifically to computers and components compatible to the IBM PC. This led to peripherals and components being advertised as ‘IBM format’, further cementing IBM as the industry standard.

The IBM Blue Gene/P system (2008), capable of 14 trillion individual calculations per second. Yep, it’s a bit faster than the IBM PC model 5150!
(© All Rights Reserved)

As a result of it’s amazing longevity (many IBM PCs have remained in use well into the 21st century), and the fact that it represents the first true personal computer, the original IBM PC have become popular among collectors of vintage PCs.

So, if you happen to still have an old model 5150 sitting in a cupboard somewhere, treasure it – depending on it’s condition it can be worth almost $5000, and unlike just about all other electronic equipment in your house, it’s value may actually increase!

August 11, 2012August 17, 2012

Getting some sand between your toes on Play In The Sand Day

Today, August 11 is Play In The Sand Day.

If you have kids, or simply want to get in touch with your inner child, grabbing a pail and shovel and spending some quality time in a sandpit may not be a bad idea. Or even better, take a trip to your nearest beach and have a go at nature’s own giant sand pit – just watch out for Physalia utriculus, those innocent looking little bubbly blue organisms (aka ‘blue bottles’) that can spoil your sandy fun with a nasty, burning sting.

Of course playing in the sand is not all fun and games – it can be a serious artistic endeavour. Sand sculpting has become a well-organised international creative activity – just look at some of these mindblowing examples.

OK, so maybe you’re not quite in the mood for sand castles, and simply need some me-time to chill out and get quiet for a while. Well, then some playing in the sand may still be your solution – you just need to define it a little differently.

Whether it’s a long, lazy walk along a sandy beach, a day exploring shipwrecks half-buried in the sand, or an afternoon spent on hands and knees, nose almost in the sand, studying your local coastal fauna and flora, whatever rocks your world, it’s all good.

However you manage to get away from it all and get some sand between your toes, I hope you have a great, relaxing Saturday.

August 10, 2012August 17, 2012

Celebrating rock ‘n’ roll royalty – Leo Fender and his iconic guitars

Come on, everybody, let your hair down and rock it like you mean it!

If you ever needed an excuse to rock out, you have one today – we celebrate the birthday of Leo Fender (10 Aug 1909 – 21 Mar 1991), the man who gave rock ‘n’ roll a huge adrenalin injection with the invention of the Fender Telecaster, the first (and many would argue still the greatest) solid-body electric guitar.

Through his company, the Fender Musical Instruments Corporation, he also made numerous other contributions to the music world, including the legendary Fender Stratocaster guitar and the Fender Precision Bass.

Rock ‘n’ roll royalty – the Fender Stratocaster.
(© All Rights Reserved)

With the changing trends in music towards the end of the 1940s, Leo Fender realised there was potential in the market for a louder, cheaper and more durable guitar than the pickup-equipped archtop guitars used by the earlier dance bands. He prototyped his first thin, solid-body electric guitar in 1949. First released in 1950 as a single pickup design called the Fender Esquire, it was quickly renamed the Broadcaster. After the addition of a second pickup, it became the Fender Telecaster (or ‘Tele’) – one of the most iconic electric guitars, still virtually unchanged, and as popular as ever, today, more than 60 years later.

Based on feedback received from players who wanted something different to what the Telecaster offered, Fender first considered changing and updating the design of the guitar. With so many players committed to the Telecaster, however, he decided to rather introduce a separate new design. The new guitar, called the Stratocaster (or ‘Strat’) – basically a Telecaster on steroids – had a more ergonomic, smooth double-cutaway body, a rounder neck, three pickups and a revolutionary tremolo (string-bending) unit. Another true rock icon, the Fender Stratocaster became the weapon of choice for countless rock guitarists over the past 50 years.

The list of guitarists who play Fender Strats and Teles reads like a who’s who of guitar gods over the ages – Jimi Hendrix, Yngwie Malmsteen, Ritchie Blackmore, Buddy Guy, Jeff Beck, Kurt Cobain, Keith Richards, Bruce Springsteen, Eric Clapton, Mark Knopfler, David Gilmour, John Mayer and Stevie Ray Vaughan, to list a few of the better known names. You just can’t argue with that!

In addition to their legendary electric guitars, the Fender company also produces acoustic guitars, electric basses, mandolins, banjos, and electric violins, as well as a range of amplifiers and PA systems.

In one of those crazy cosmic coincidences, today also happens to be the day (back in 1897) that aspirin was first created. So it turns out that the same day that gave us the man who helped put the volume into rock n roll, also gave us the substance that could help relieve the headaches suffered by those who couldn’t handle the volume!

August 9, 2012August 17, 2012

Keeping yourself in shape on Book Lover’s Day

A few days ago I wrote a bit of an ode to the paperback book. Today, however, we turn our focus from the book itself to those who lovingly cherish all things book-ish – it’s Book Lover’s Day.

The day is, confusingly, also celebrated in early November, but perhaps it’s not that strange – as any true book-lover will tell you, we’ll happily celebrate our love of books every day of the year!

Whether you love reading, collecting, or simply handling books, this day is for you. Maybe you’ve grudgingly given in to the pressure of the e-book wave, but you’ll know that nothing matches the pure joy of smelling a new, freshly opened book, discovering a well-worn copy of a special book in a second-hand book-dealer, or simply leaning back and enjoying a lazy day with a relaxing read in hand.

And how great is it to discover a wonderful new author you never knew before?

Considering some of the incredible books that have appeared so far this year, there’s certainly no reasons for complaint from the book-lovers among us. Except perhaps a lack of time, or budget, to get around to all the great reads out there.

If you thought reading is only good for the mind, here’s another titbit to further convince you of the advantages of ‘book loverism’: it turns out that readers may be less obese than non-readers! In an article by Fred C. Pampel in the Sociology of Health and Illness journal, entitled “Does reading keep you thin? Leisure activities, cultural tastes, and body weight in comparative perspective”, it is stated that “While sedentary leisure-time activities such as reading, going to movies, attending cultural events, going to sporting events, watching TV, listening to music, and socialising with friends would seem to contribute to excess weight, a perspective focusing on socioeconomic status (SES) differences in cultural tastes suggests the opposite, that some sedentary activities are associated with lower rather than higher body weight.” One of the findings in the article is that people who spend more time reading and generally participating in intellectual activities, and less time shopping and watching TV, have a lower body weight than their peers.

OK, maybe suggesting reading books will help keep you in shape is a bit of a stretch, but if it can help turn one more soul out there on to the joys of reading, why not?

So what books are you enjoying at the moment?

August 8, 2012August 17, 2012

Some paradoxical fun on Infinity Day

Today is 8 August, the eighth of the eighth, 8-8. Or, if you turn it on it’s side, a couple of infinity signs stacked on top of each other… Yep, it’s Infinity Day!

The concept of infinity refers to something that is without limits. It has application in various fields such as mathematics, physics, logic and computing. Infinite sets can be either countably infinite (for example the set of integers – you can count the individual numbers, even though they go on forever) or uncountably infinite (e.g. real numbers – there are also infinitely many of them, but you cannot count the individual numbers because they are not discreet entities).

Since infinity is really, really big – incomprehensibly so – it can lead to some amusing paradoxical scenarios; things that don’t make sense, by making complete sense.

An example of this is the Galileo Paradox, which states that “Though most numbers are not squares, there are no more numbers than squares.” In the set of positive integers, for example, the squares (1, 4, 9, 16, 25…) occur with much less frequency than the non-squares (2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24…). So there must be less of them, right? At the same time, however, every number is the square root of some square number, so there’s a one-to-one relationship between numbers and squares. Thus there cannot be more numbers than squares…

And therein lies the paradox… In a finite set, the square numbers would indeed be a minority, but in an infinite set, this is no longer the case.

Cool, right?

OK, here’s another fun one – Hilbert’s paradox of the Grand Hotel, presented by the German mathematician David Hilbert. This one states that “If a hotel with infinitely many rooms is full, it can still take in infinitely more guests.” In other words, let’s assume we have a hotel with a countably infinite number of rooms, all of which are occupied – in other words, each room has a guest in it. Then, since all the rooms are occupied, there can be no more room for new guests, right? Not so – simply move the guest in room 1 to room 2, move the guest in room 2 to room 3, and so on, to infinity. Then room 1 becomes available, so we can accommodate the new guest. And we can repeat this process indefinitely, so a hotel with an infinite number of fully occupied rooms can still accommodate an infinite number of new guests.

And on that note I will leave you to contemplate the concept of infinity. Don’t worry if it’s complicated – you have an infinite amount of time before the end of the day. Before you reach the end of the day, you have to reach the midway time between the current time and that time. And before you reach that midway time, you have to reach the midway between the current time and that time. And so on, to infinity…

It’s going to be a long day!

August 7, 2012August 17, 2012

Take time out to visit a lighthouse on Lighthouse Day

Today is Lighthouse Day, created to commemorate the day in 1789 when US Congress approved an Act for the establishment and support of lighthouses, beacons, buoys and public piers.

While this is a US commemoration, it’s surely reason enough to celebrate the important role fulfilled by lighthouses the world over, marking treacherous coastlines, hazardous shoals, reefs and safe entries to harbors.

Many lighthouses have fallen into disuse due to high maintenance costs and the emergence of new electronic navigation systems. The aim of Lighthouse Day is to focus attention on these imposing landmarks from our past, and to create awareness about local, national and international societies and organisations making an effort to preserve lighthouses for future generations.

Lighthouses traditionally symbolise safety, stability and truth, and as such their preservation holds symbolic importance for mankind. Go on, pay a visit to your nearest lighthouse and take time to appreciate its grandeur. And don’t forget to take some photos – lighthouses are famously photogenic entities!

August 6, 2012August 17, 2012

Give your feet some breathing space on Wiggle Your Toes Day

Are you wearing shoes all day? Forced to tuck your feet into constricting footgear for the sake of societal acceptance?

Well then today is the day to take a stand – kick off those shoes, kick back, and spend some quality time pampering your poor, abused feet – it’s Wiggle Your Toes Day. You can do yourself a huge favour by making a habit of going shoe-less on a more regular basis. It can make a world of difference to your health and general well-being.

In a study by Phil Hoffman published in the Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery, the feet of barefooted and shoe-wearing cultures are compared, highlighting the severe injustices our feet are subjected to.

Genetically, the feet of shoe-wearing people are no different from those of barefooted cultures – we have not yet evolved to having shoe-shaped feet, and up to shoe-wearing age we’re all, pardon the pun, on pretty much equal footing. At this point, however, things take a serious turn for the worse for the shoe-wearers, as we start forcing our feet into shoes that are shaped to conform to some weird societal concept of beauty, rather than footgear that fit the natural form of the foot.

From years of constrictive shoe-wearing, the shape of the feet of shoe-wearing adults diverge completely from adults barefooted cultures. In barefooted people, feet tend to widen towards the toes, and the toes themselves are comfortably spread, with the big toe in particular being separated from it’s neighbour by a considerable interval. This helps with balance and flexibility. Shoe-wearing, however, constricts the spread of the front-foot, and in particular crowds the toes. This results in a narrower, more pointed foot-shape, with the toes close together and often even overlapping their neighbours.

Not only are our shoes the wrong shape, but they are also often too small, even for our already squashed feet. And if that’s not enough, there’s high-heeled shoes – fashion accessories that force the foot into an even more unnatural position, forcing the wearer to stand largely on the front-foot, which as a result has to bear more that it’s proportionate share of the body-weight. This leads to a shortening of the calf muscles to such an extent that many middle aged women cannot dorso-flex the foot to a right angle without bending their knees to relax the calf muscles.

So compared to the healthy, stable, wide, flexible and strong feet of barefooted people, the shoe-wearing cultures have given themselves deformed, pointy, inflexible, weakened, calloused, smelly feet and deformed muscles. Not too clever for a so-called advanced culture, are we?

And given that our feet play such a critical role in our overall health and well-being, is it any wonder that we suffer from so many ailments? Crazy stuff indeed.

So, why don’t you do yourself a favour – kick off your shoes and wiggle your toes. And do this as often as you can. Even if your physical environment makes it difficult to go barefoot, at least opt for some non-constrictive sandals (or jandals, as we call them here in New Zealand), or even some loose-fitting sneakers.

Do this regularly, and your body will love you for it!