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What is elephantiasis?

Elephantiasis is another skin disease characterized by extreme swelling of parts of the body.  Mosquitos spread this infection in a similar fashion charactistic of malaria.  Parasitic worms swim through the bloodstream causing abnormal growths all over the body.  Naturally, tropical areas such as Central America, Africa, and some parts of Asia are the most vulnerable areas for elephantiasis.  In most cases, some people will not even know they have elephantiasis until up to seven years after the intial infection. 

There is some debate over whether there is a cure for elephantiasis.  Some claim that there has been a cure discovered and that a man lost a significant amount of weight after the treatment, but others claim that it is still incurable.

What is Tree Man's Disease?

Tree man's disease is a terrible disease characterized by large lesions or warts on the body.  These warts are formed as a result of an infection of the human papillomavirus.  Usually people who form these warts have an impaired immune respone and cannot fight the infection.  The warts and lesions develop into shapes and colors that resemble the surface of a tree trunk covered in fungus.


Dede Kosawa, known for his battle with Tree Man's Disease.



Tree man's disease can be treated by exercising sun protection, since the sun has been shown to increase the possibiliities of the disease becoming cancer.  Cryotherapy with liquid nitrogen and electrosurgery is also helpful.  Some medicine is also distributed to people with this disease to ease the development of the warts and lesions. They can be removed, but they will only continue to form throughout lifetime.

Are there more right-handed people than left-handed people?

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There's really no accurate way to tell, since, in the 1970's and 80's, many parents forced their left-handed children to use their right hand.  Because of that, the current generation would seem to be mostly right-handed, despite the fact that their brains are primarily left-dominate.  In a study done by the American Psychological Association, five groups of people were given 13 activities to do with one of their hands.  Some people used their right hand for one activity and their left for a another; others only used their right hand; the rest were either left-handed or ambilateral (could use both hands).  From this study, it seems that there are more right-handed individuals than left or ambilateral.  The percentage of left-handers is comparatively small next to the percentage of right-handers.  Based on this study, we would conclude that there are more right-handed people in the world than left-handed people.  However, one must take into account that some of these right-handers may have been forced away from their left-dominate brains during childhood.  There are too many problems with this experiment that we cannot control, so therefore, no accurate conclusion can be made.

Who discovered Okazaki fragments?



Okazakis are the first two people on the left.
1975



Believe it or not, a husband and wife whose names were Reiji and Tsuneko Okazaki discovered them!  They discovered the fragments in 1968.  They were believed to be natives of Hiroshima, surviving the bombs of World War II.  Reiji Okazaki died in 1975, due to leukemia.  Tsuneko is still living and promoting science in Japan.

Are there microscopes that can actually see the double helix of DNA?

Yes, the ultrahigh resolution scanning electron microscope has been able to reveal nucleosomes and the double helix structure of DNA.  Here is an abstract from U.S. National Library of Medicine:

“We observed DNA double helix and nucleosomes in the chromatin of chicken erythrocytes by ultrahigh-resolution scanning electron microscopy. Specimens were prepared according to a modified microspreading technique in combination with the carbon plate method and observed without metal coating. A part of the DNA fibers without nucleosomes showed "left-handed" double-strands with twisting appearances and regular periodicities of the helix. Linker DNA between the nucleosomes showed "right-handed" appearances. Most of the nucleosome particles appeared as prolate ellipsoidal shapes of various sizes. DNA appeared to enter and exit the nucleosome particles on opposite sides winding around the histone core.

PMID: 1791402 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]"

Why do our eyes produce green goup while we sleep?

There are many different reasons for that green goup, also known as eye mucus, to form in the night.  Most commonly, it is just the accumulation of tear components, mucus, skin and blood cells, and dust particles that are squeezed out as your eyes are closed.  Other times, eye infections can cause the eye to let out mucus into the corner of your eye.  This mucus is usually also combined with lymphocytes and white blood cells, indicative of the body fighting that infection.

Why aren’t my eyebrows the same color as my hair?

You probably have varying levels of melanin.  Melanin is the dark pigment that gives hair, eyes, and skin their unique color.  More melanin will create darker hair.  If you have lighter eyebrows than the rest of your hair, you probably have less melanin in that area of your body.  If you have darker eyebrows than the rest of your hair, you probably have more melanin concentration in that area of your body. 

What are the laws concerning human cloning?

Fifteen states have laws pertaining to human cloning. The issue was first addressed by California legislature, which banned reproductive cloning, or cloning to initiate a pregnancy, in 1997. Since then Arkansas, Connecticut, Indiana, Iowa, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Rhode Island, New Jersey, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Virginia have enacted measures to prohibit reproductive cloning. Arizona and Missouri have measures that address the use of public funds for cloning, and Maryland prohibits the use of state stem cell research funds for reproductive cloning and possibly therapeutic cloning depending on how one interprets the definition of human cloning in the statute. Louisiana also enacted legislation that prohibited reproductive cloning, but the law expired in July 2003.

Arkansas, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, North Dakota and South Dakota laws extend their prohibitions to therapeutic cloning, or cloning for research purposes. Virginia's law also may ban human cloning for any purpose, but it may be open to varying interpretations because the law does not define the term "human being," which is used in the definition of human cloning. Rhode Island law does not prohibit cloning for research, and California and New Jersey human cloning laws specifically permit cloning for the purpose of research.

Copied from the National Conference of State Legislatures website: http://www.ncsl.org/default.aspx?tabid=14284.

How does a cool mist humidifier work?

A cool mist humidifier is usually used in a home with small children, because it adds moisture to the air without the hazard of heat.  There are different types, though, and they all work differently.  An evaporation wick humidifier absorbs the water in the tank with a wick, and then evaporates it with a fan, creating the mist.  An impeller humidifier uses a small spinning disc to create the mist.  Ultrasonic humidifiers are another kind of humidifier, and produce their mist by vibrating the water with sound waves.

Is it true that blue-eyed/blondes are more vulnerable to becoming blind?

It is a myth that blue eyes are weaker than brown eyes.  However, because blue eyes have a smaller amount of melanin in their irises, they are more sensitive to light.  Melanin is a dark pigment that protects the macula lutea by trapping light rays and preventing damage.  Since people with blue eyes don’t have as strong of protection as brown eyes, they are not able to resist many different types of light rays, some of which can damage the eye permanently.  Therefore, it is true that blue-eyed people are more vulnerable to becoming blind.  Hair color really has nothing to do with it.

When do human beings start to dream?

Taken from Scientific American Magazine.

Paul Li, lecturer of cognitive science at the University of California, Berkeley, replies: Pinpointing when humans begin to dream remains an elusive challenge, although scientists have some ideas. There are researchers who argue that dreams originate as early as in the mother’s womb, whereas others posit that they first occur when a child’s brain becomes more developed, around five to seven years old.

Self-reports of dreams provide the only reliable evidence that a person can dream. Unfortunately, it is impossible to ask a newborn infant or a fetus whether it had a dream last night. Instead scientists can gather clues about when we begin to dream by monitoring certain physiological markers while a person is asleep, such as brain waves, muscle tension and eye movements.

One stage of sleep, in particular, often indicates when a person is dreaming. This stage, called rapid eye movement, or REM sleep, typically occupies about 20 percent of an adult’s night sleep. Newborn babies may spend more than 80 percent of their total sleep time in REM.

Fetuses also experience REM sleep. Studies using ultrasound have shown that fetuses exhibit REM sleep as early as the 23rd week of gestation.

Although scientists can detect REM activity in fetuses, they cannot know for certain whether this physiological activity, specifically eye movements, indicates that the fetus is dreaming. This inability to determine what is happening is because humans do not necessarily always dream during REM sleep, and humans can dream outside of this sleep stage.

But even if we could assume, for a moment, that fetuses dream, what would they imagine in their sleep? And how much would their dreams differ from those children and adults have? These questions are certainly worth sleeping on.

What is in water purification tablets and how do they work?

Tetraglycine hydroperiodide: An iodine compound used for the emergency disinfection of drinking water in amounts to yield 8 ppm (milligrams) of active iodine.

Titratable iodine

When dissolved, both diatomic iodine ((I2) and hypoiodous acid (HIO) are released. Because the tablets contain a buffer, the treated water is maintained at acidic conditions with an approximate pH level of 5.5. Diatomic iodine is more abundant than hypoiodous acid. This mixture provides adequate disinfection of most waters.

Chemical reaction rates, and consequently germicidal effects, are subject to variables such as water temperature and level of contamination in the water. For this reason, two tablets of Potable Aqua and a 30-minute waiting period are required before drinking the water. The iodine works by penetrating the cell wall of the microorganism, therefore rendering it inactive.

What's the difference between Buffalo and Bison?

Early American settlers called bison “bufello” due to the similar appearance between the two animals, and the name "buffalo" stuck for the American variety. But it's wrong.

The American bison (Bison bison) lives only in North America, while the two main buffalo species reside in Africa and Asia. A small population of bison relatives called the European bison (Bison bonasus) lives in isolated parts of Poland. Like buffalo, bison belong to the Bovidae family, which includes more than 100 species of hoofed mammals, called ungulates—buffalo, bison, antelopes, gazelles, cattle, sheep and goats. Two main buffalo species exist: African cape buffalo and Asian water buffalo.

If you were to stand eye-to-eye with a buffalo species and a bison—and neither killed mowed you down—you’d notice stark physical differences. Unlike any buffalo species, the American bison sports a large shoulder hump and a massive head, which gives this symbol of the West its burly appearance.

African cape buffalo (Syncerus caffer) graze along the savannahs and grasslands of southern and eastern Africa. As if wearing a colonial-wig, the male is equipped with a head shield from which its horns sprout.

When it comes to horns, the Asian water buffalo (Bubalus bubalis) would take home the crown hands down. The crescent-shaped horns atop its head have a tip-to-tip span of up to six feet. They aren’t just for show, as this marsh-mucking buffalo uses its horns to scoop up cool mud and throw the goop onto its back.

What is "Zulu" time?

"Zulu" time is that which is more commonly know as "GMT" (Greenwich Mean Time). Our natural concept of time is linked to the rotation of the earth and we define the length of the day as the 24 hours it takes (on average) the earth to spin once on its axis.

As time pieces became more accurate and communication became global, there needed to be a point from which all other world times were based. Since Great Britain was the world's foremost maritime power when the concept of latitude and longitude came to be, the starting point for designating longitude was the "prime meridian" which is zero degrees and runs through the Royal Greenwich Observatory, in Greenwich, England.

When the concept of time zones was introduced, the "starting" point for calculating the different time zones was agreed to be the Royal Greenwich Observatory. 

Unfortunately the Earth does not rotate at exactly a constant rate. Due to various scientific reasons and increased accuracy in measuring the earth's rotation, a new timescale, called Coordinated Universal Time (UTC), has been adopted and replaces the term GMT.

The Navy, as well as civil aviation, uses the letter "Z" (phonetically "Zulu") to refer to the time at the prime meridian. 

NOAA satellites use Zulu Time or Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) as their time reference. The satellite images that appear on NOAA's Web sites are stamped in Zulu time.

The Department of the Navy serves as the United States official timekeeper, with the Master Clock facility at the U.S. Naval Observatory, Washington, D.C.

How did the days of the week get their names?

The days of the week were named after Norse gods and giant objects in the sky. These names come to us originally from the Greeks and Romans, who named the days of the week after their gods. The Anglo-Saxons, who invaded Britain hundreds of years ago, adopted this idea but substituted their own gods. The English language has inherited and changed those names a bit, but the ones we use today resemble those names.
Here's how:

• Sunday: Sun's Day. The Sun gave people light and warmth every day. They decided to name the first (or last) day of the week after the Sun.
• Monday: Moon's Day. The Moon was thought to be very important in the lives of people and their crops.
• Tuesday: Tiw's Day. Tiw, or Tyr, was a Norse god known for his sense of justice.
• Wednesday: Woden's Day. Woden, or Odin, was a Norse god who was one of the most powerful of them all.
• Thursday: Thor's Day. Thor was a Norse god who wielded a giant hammer.
• Friday: Frigg's Day. Frigg was a Norse god equal in power to Odin.
• Saturday: Seater's Day or Saturn's Day. Saturn was a Roman god.

How does Rogaine work, and can I use it to make my hair thicker and longer?

Rogaine is believed to revitalize shrunken hair follicles so they increase in size, but how it exactly works is unproven. When it is used twice a day, the follicles may increase in size and the growing phase for the hair becomes longer. It is also believed that Rogaine increases the blood flow to the areas near the balding section, stimulating hair growth.

Rogaine will not make your hair grow thicker and longer.