The Survival of The Scorching Heat

 
Heat can negatively impact the survival of humans. It has been reported that about 688 people die each year from extreme heat. This statistic was according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention. The heat alone isn’t the killer; it needs the aide of humidity to cause all the harm. When there is tremendous high temperatures and high humidity, a person begins to sweat but the sweat is not drying on the skin whatsoever. It becomes a major factor when the ridiculous temperatures remain overnight, that is when the body becomes overwhelmed from not getting the respite that it desperately needs. For example, a person that had spent an entire day under the heat, the first thing that shuts down is the ability to sweat. When someone sweats and it dries up by the air is because it is the way the body cools off. But since the ability to sweat has ceased then it leads the person into having a heat stroke. There are also heat rashes and muscle cramps that arise from that as well. Hyperthermia is a common term when humans tend to reach the temperature of 105-107 degrees. Surpassing that degree rate leads to deterioration of internal organs and eventually death. Those who are under the medication of diuretics for high blood pressure and beta blockers become more susceptible to extreme heat and its danger. The way humans cope with the heat is through perspiration and breathing. There is also the invention of air conditioning which greatly helps create some of the environments cooler. Keeping cool by drinking enough fluids replacing the ones that have been sweated out previously and showering with cool water to keep the body temperature at a reasonable temperature is another way. Sports drinks such as Gatorade or PowerAde are very beneficial to drink in order to replace electrolytes that were loss through profusely sweating and exerting oneself. It is said that skin pigmentation also becomes a benefactor when it comes to the heat. It helps protect it from the sun and allows for absorption of the heat. 

 

 (Nick Miller known as the guy who profusely sweats so much especially when lying)

A short term cause from being under extreme temperatures would be heat exhaustion like previously mentioned. There is also sunburn which indicates that the human body has been under extreme heat for a long period of time. The lighter the skin the more it is affected by the tremendous heat because of the less protection they carry and that is because not enough melanin is produced by them. That is one factor and the other would be perspiration and the drying of perspiration in order to cool down the body.

A facultative adaptation from being under the heat would most definitely being passing out. This is the body losing its state of consciousness. It is temporary and it is caused by lack of oxygen in the brain. This also brings a side effect of causing hypotension (low blood pressure). This mechanism is for the body to reprogram itself from the heat and normalize oxygen levels again.

Developmental adaptation comes from the body frame from every individual. It is said that slimmer and taller people are way more adapted to heat. It is able to release heat more effectively than a thicker person. There is less cells and less body exposed to the heat. It is said that cells are the ones that make heat in the body and if there is less cells then there is less heat being produced and more room for cool temperatures. As it should already be known, the larger the frame then the more heat there is.

Developmental adaptation comes from the body frame from every individual. It is said that slimmer and taller people are way more adapted to heat. It is able to release heat more effectively than a thicker person. There is less cells and less body exposed to the heat. It is said that cells are the ones that make heat in the body and if there is less cells then there is less heat being produced and more room for cool temperatures. As it should already be known, the larger the frame then the more heat there is.

 

A cultural adaptation as I previously mentioned would be the air conditioning. Thanks to Willis carrier for inventing such a magnificent way of living, we have been able to survive various heat waves. This has helped keep homes, schools, buildings and even mode of transportation very cool in order to make the heat bearable. Some would have said that a fan would be another cultural adaptation which I can see how it can be. However some scientists have said that it just makes it worse. It is just hot air being circulated throughout the area.

The benefit from studying human variation is a better way to fully understand who we are. As great as the first benefit sounded like, the second may be of upmost importance of why learning human variation is important and that is because it helps us value the human welfare. Human genetics is an applied science instead of it being fundamental. It has lead to the discovery and description of the contributions of genetics to many human diseases. It has been a motivation to a growing understanding of how some genes tend to develop diseases such as cancer, heart disease and even diabetes. A great deal of money has been investing in such study because of the potential there is to improve human health. One great example of this would be from the very knowledge of sex chromosomes that was gained through the study of patients with sex chromosome abnormalities. Another great example but current one would be the understanding of cell growth and reproduction, and just solely gained from a study on genes, that when mutated it can cause a greater risk of cancer. Recombinant techniques of DNA has transformed the study of genetics. The third reason for studying human variation would be that it gives us a powerful tool to understand and describe human evolution more thoroughly.

Briefly going back to the discussion of adaptation to heat, race or in other words ethnicity does not have any greater effects in the role of adaptation to climate changes. There is no such thing as a race of people who have been selectively bred to survive conditions that others were unable to survive to. It is just that cultural groups tend to make all sorts of adaptations to account for the climate that is existential in their area. But also the denial of ethnicity not having a role in adaptation cannot be accepted because there haven’t been much studies of it other than the idea of the more skin pigmentation (melanin) then the more protection one has from the heat. Two people could be out in the same temperature. It could be cold for one and for the other it could be a pleasant climate. Then there is a few other people that feel and think of the climate similarly. But if it were to be used in order to understand the variation of adaptation would be by placing people with the same race in the same climate they have been adapted to. From doing such procedure it would show how they adapted to such climate and how might they have gradually changed over time. The benefit that comes from the study of environmental influences on adaptations would be better used through race is because it gives us hard evidence on how people have evolved through periods of time by these outside stressors. Adaptation and change is an ability that is greatly inherited in all the human beings which is the major connection that should bring us together as one despite of our outside differences. Not only that but if we were all to see this similarity then we can all come together to help find cures for the major ongoing disease that keeps taking away loved ones from us and that is cancer. This study and interest helps us get closer to many answers and helps us create a safer environment for all of us in order to keep surviving and reproducing.

Nonverbal vs Verbal Communication

PART I

The language experiment was quite interesting and somewhat fun to do. For the first fifteen minutes I engaged in a conversation with an individual but under a certain condition, I was not allowed to use any symbolic language (writing, ASL, no speaking). At first it was going quite smoothly just listening to the stories this person had to say about how their day went and some of the struggles they had encountered throughout the day. However, once five minutes started to kick in, the individual began to feel quite uncomfortable from me being unresponsive. It was very difficult to not say anything, especially because the individual questioned me a few times in order to get my opinion. I was unable to reply like I stated previously and I notice a facial expression change on the individual from passive to aggravation. The individual by the way is my very own sister. On a regular day when we are conversing, I tend to give her a lot of my opinions and speak of the things that went on in my day. She did not expect me to be silent for quite so long. By quite I mean not being verbal whatsoever. My hand gestures, facial expressions and body movements were making her feel uneasy. She started saying “you are so weird,” “How come you can’t give me a response to this and when you need one from me, I always give it to you,” and last but not least “are you even listening to me?” She was the one to be in control of the conversation the whole time which is somewhat weird because I am usually the one in control of it. She would be the listener any other day and for this experiment she had to lead and try to change topics to see if I was paying any attention to her at all, even though I tried showing her that I was with my body language.

I did not conduct this experiment with any further individuals or better yet, a group of people. But if I would have done so then I think it wouldn’t have been as awkward or difficult. Simply nodding or smiling to the person in response to their initiation of a conversation shows that someone is listening and absorbing every spec of detail he or she is speaking of. Plus there are other people in the group in which some tend to speak for the others and it just makes things a tad bit easier. I was unable to ask any questions. I somewhat answered the individual’s questions through my body language. At least that is what I think. As for power, the power would lean toward the individual (my sister). She was in control of it. Although there was some sort of power coming from my end by my expression in showing that I was in agreement of paying attention to her. Yet I believe verbal communication is more powerful than non-verbal language. Verbally you get to fully express yourself and non-verbally you only highlight specific points. I feel that way because I am accustomed to such way of communication. There are a few cultures where they use a different method of communication and it works well with their people. However, spoken language is far more common which makes it have an advantage over any other form of communication. It is being able to express one’s feelings, thoughts and practice reasoning in a world full of so many possibilities. Having a voice and using it gives us a vast amount of power already. If someone who is verbal tries to communicate with someone from a culture where non-verbal communication, they will find it very difficult and would also feel some sort of oppression from not being able to fully express themselves.

PART II

Now the second time around, I still find it a tad bit difficult communicating. Although for part 2 verbal communications was allowed minus the physical embellishments. It was tough for me because whenever I speak on any regular day, I tend to use my hands a lot to further explain what I am verbally saying. I again felt a bit constraint withholding myself from not speaking with my body language. I mean a conversation was flowing for awhile. Started off smoothly when introducing ourselves and asking about each other’s day. Then that is where I started noticing a bit of difficulty and the start of loss of interest in the conversation. My sister said that she started to find me boring and very dull when communicating in such manner. She in fact ended the conversation after like eight minutes and walked away. She didn’t want to continue speaking with me when I was speaking in such manner. This showed to me that using physical embellishments when speaking to anyone is vital. Body language help get across the true feelings of the person to the other person. A type of aura is set when one uses those abilities when communicating which helps identify whether a person carries a good or bad vibe with them. As technology keeps progressing rapidly, many have had trouble when text messaging people. Some have said that misinterpretation is common and true feelings never get across though it is a rapid way of communicating with another. Real time communication would remain important simply because of the true emotions; ideas and aura of a person are felt way more than technology was of speaking.

Body language in other words is a code of nonverbal cues. We spent most of our time trying to decode people’s body language and vice versa. The body participates in showing or even hiding one’s mental state. Learning how to read body language helps us really read what people are feeling aside from what they have verbally have said they have felt. Some say they are feeling fine when in reality deep down inside they are hurting. Reading body language help us discern when people are telling the truth or when they are lying. It also lets the speaker know that the listener is attentive to detail of their communication. I am sure many can read body language it is just that some are quite ignorant of it and choose not to pay attention to someone’s nonverbal communication. There are a few situations where reading someone’s body language is not beneficial and as commonly known it would be at a job interview. People are very nervous when interviewing and it is because they want to show that they are the best candidate for the job that stress and anxiety kick in making the person nervous and jittery from time to time when interviewing. Then it seems like the person is not able to be attentive or is easily distracted when in reality they are just tense. There is also the time when someone meets another individual the first time. Again, they are just nervous and trying to find ways to get comfortable with this individual that it makes them seem uneasy and a bit quiet. Some body language is more obvious to discern and it is said that about 70% of our communication is achieved non-verbally and surprisingly more accurate than verbal communication. This was a very fun experiment to do in all honesty and I’ve come to learn even more of how vital both nonverbal and verbal communication are. There are many ways to get a message across and luckily we have the ability to use all of those ways.

The Disgrace of Charles Dawson

Charles Dawson (sitting) and the workers at the Piltdown

The Piltdown man was one paleoanthropological hoax where fossils were presented on December 18, 1912 at a meeting of U.K’s Geological Society by one proletarian archeologist known as Charles Dawson and by Arthur Smith Woodward a representative from the British Museum.  They presented such fossils to the other members at the meeting as fossilized remains of a previously unknown human to describe as the ancestor of all humans. Piltdown man was found in a gravel pit near the town of Piltdown which would be known to be in South-Eastern England. First of all, there was a jawbone structure that was discovered in 1907 in Germany that displayed similar characteristics between humans and apes. At that time, the jawbone was actually the best piece of evidence to be found. However, it was still not enough for the scientists. They wanted something more definitive. That is where Charles Dawson comes in. Dawson was known as a solicitor out in England nearby Sussex.  As previously mentioned he was also an amateur paleontologist.  In the year 1908, a few workmen that were digging at a pit near Piltdown discovered an interesting bone structure. They were very aware how intrigued Charles Dawson was by fossils that they presented such unique bone structure to him.  Such presentation piqued Dawson’s interest and he had an immediate irk to keep digging at such pit for more. The aid of Arthur Smith was thus needed and he was known as a keeper of The Department of Geology at the British Museum.

By 1912 Charles Dawson and Arthur had discovered what seemed to be two skull fragments and an inquisitive jawbone. Since both the jawbone and the skull fragments seemed to have aligned somewhat perfectly, they both concluded that these fossils came from the same species. It was quite an exciting discovery because the fossils had the characteristics of both man and ape. It is said that the jaw looked as if it came from an ape and the skull from a human. So if it was really indeed bone fragments from a creature then they have found a gold mine which would have been the ancestor of both man and ape. At the meeting of the Geological Society of London, Arthur stressed so much the “fact” that the reconstructed jaw and skull bones were from a human that lived about half a million years ago sometime in the lower Pleistocene era. The stressing of such idea brought so much questioning of is validation. Many felt that the jaw looked way too dissimilar from the skull structure and that it looked like it belong to an ape more than a human. After several years of questioning the validation, more fossils of animals were found in the pit that the “man” fossils were found at. Few decades past and several actual human bone structure fossils were popping out which led a team of researchers in 1953 named Kenneth Oakley, Wilfred Le Gros Clark, and Joseph Weiner to a rigorous series of test of the Piltdown man fossils. The skull tested out to be fake after it was tested by fluorine which the skull appeared to be 50,000 years old instead of half a million years old. The jawbone was actually just a few decades old from 1912. The second test involved nitrogen which again confirmed the first test; with nitrogen they found the jaw to be stained with potassium dichromate which made it appear older. These fossilized structures Dawson found were claimed to be from a female Orangutan and were planted at the pit near Piltdown which was greatly argues by The British Museum Researchers. Since Woodward was known as a very honest man, the pointed Dawson as the culprit. It became more relevant to blame him for the hoax because Dawson had previously trafficked in other false relics.  Till this day many scientist agree that Dawson was the culprit of such a heinous act.

The Scientific Significance that arose from the Piltdown Hoax was that accuracy is mandatory. Therefore every natural phenomena or some sort of fossils must be tested several times to conclude a definite answer and evidence explaining such phenomena. This hoax was a very great example in how it is important to take a step back from our preconceived ideas and actually look at the evidence thoroughly. One of various effects this brought to the scientific community was that this halted the study of human origins by many decades. Charles Dawson main concern throughout his fraudulent ventures of finding evidence of human origins were more about his scientific recognition and his ambition to be elected as one of the Royal Society. The human faults that can come into play as in falsifying such documents and even fossils that are supposedly evidence would be mainly the pride in being recognized and receiving an award more than the validation of the publications. The effect it brings is misleading information that will put a study in hiatus just because of how credible it can be that the length of its acceptance grows before someone becomes eerie of it. As quite scary as the effect that such situation to happen sounds like, there was a positive effect of this fraudulent discovery. That is that more scientists began to question and further test out every finding to make sure it is correct. The scientists developed techniques in which helped identify fraudulent findings as they tested out this jaw and skull fragments plus the scientific method was shown to be very effect when it came to classifying this discovery as fraudulent. The techniques or more like resources they used were both fluorine and nitrogen. These two chemicals were the ones to show in depth structure and alterations to the fragments.

Human factors being removed from science is not plausible because human factors are the reason why there have been quite advancement in science. Human factors are known to be a scientific discipline in which it gives a better acknowledgment of how to interact with other humans and other fundamentals of a system. Science has brought so many discoveries from the first fossil ever found to the newest drug that can help reduce life threatening diseases. This is why removal of human factors could probably hinder further scientific discoveries; it is needed in order to find not only evidence for natural phenomena that arise but also for advancements in theories or methods in order to design a well being for humans.

 The Piltdown hoax should be an example as to we should verify or per say go over our work before it is presented in order to avoid any errors. The other life lesson that I grasped from this false discovery is that both pride and arrogance lead to no other than disgrace. Charles Dawson had been very well known as an archaeologist but he wanted more and that is be recognized and awarded. But he failed because of all the pride he had from previous discoveries led him to submit fraudulent evidence and publications all for the vanity of having the recognition from the people of the United Kingdom.

for further information visit the following links:
http://hoaxes.org/archive/permalink/the_piltdown_man

http://www.history.com/news/piltdown-man-hoax-100-years-ago

Homologous & Analogous Traits

HOMOLOGOUS TRAIT

Homology is a reference to two things that have an equivalent role or some sort of relationship. Two species have related parts that may do the similar things but are not really the same. Homology is very important when it comes to comparative biology because it helps identify if any species have a common ancestor. Two examples of species that possess a homologous trait would be a human being and a Golden Retriever. These two species come from two very different environments in which they have adjusted to it accordingly. Humans are mammals with a diet being classified as omnivores because of both the meat and vegetable intake. However, according to recent studies, scientists have classified humans as being more carnivores than omnivores due to the meat intake yearly.  A Golden Retriever was officially recognized in 1925 by the American Kennel Club and it is a large-sized breed of dog bred. Their diet is basically under omnivore because they eat both meat and vegetables. Their environment of course is basically anywhere around the world except the oceans. Both of these two species have been classified as vertebrae.
 

 
 

There are quite a few examples as to how humans and dogs both carry a homologus trait and one of them would be the tailbone of a human and the tail of a dog (Golden Retriever). The tailbone of the human or the coccyx has become a vestigial structure, dogs have their tails intact. The coccyx serves as a sort of attachment to tendons, ligaments, and muscles. It also works as an insertion point to some of the muscles in relation to the pelvic floor. On the other hand the canine tail consists of about six to at least 23 mobile vertebrae. Muscles line the tail vertebrae by tendons. The usage of the tail is for a dog to communicate. That’s how they express if they are happy, full of aggression, stressed and many other emotions. It also serves as a balance when dogs are carrying out complicated tasks. We don’t have a visible tail like the dogs do but the structure of the coccyx and the bones supporting it are similar to the tailbones to the dogs.

 

 Protungulatum Donnae

Humans and dogs have shared a common ancestor over 100 million years ago. The ancestor they both share is speculated by researchers to be an insectivore. It was a small, adorable, long-tailed insect eater called Protungulatum Donnae. This was the one to begin the sprang of every “placental mammal.” This common ancestor through evidence showed that it may have lived in North America, but there are still possibilities that animal may have existed in other continents as well. Some of the characteristics are full-term live births, the Protungulatum was found with two horn uterus and a placenta in which the blood came in close contact the membranes that surrounded the fetus just like it is in humans or any other mammal.

ANALOGOUS TRAIT 

  
An analogous trait or structure is when two different species have similar traits but they are not related to each other. The species may live in similar environments and both fill in similar ecological roles. A great example of analogous trait possessors would be the Great White Shark and the Bottle-nose Dolphin. The Great White Shark is the largest predator fish in the world. They can be anywhere from fifteen to twenty feet and weigh about 5,000 lbs. They are found in cool, coastal waters throughout the world. Their bodies are slate-gray on the upper bodies in order to blend in with the rocky coastal sea floor, but because of their white bellies is how they got their name. The shark’s skeleton is composed of cartilage. Their diet is classified as carnivores. On the other hand Bottle-nose Dolphins are known as a very charismatic, intelligent and because of their curved mouths it makes them the friendliest smiling creatures. They are classified as mammals with a carnivorous diet. They are about ten to fourteen feet in size and weigh about 1,100 lbs. live about 50 years. Their skeleton is made up of bone unlike the sharks.  Usually are found in tropical oceans and other warms water around the world. Another unique difference between the two would be that dolphins go up the surface to breathe air while sharks use their gills to extract oxygen from the water.











 
Although both of these species are in similar in appearance such as their color, how their fins are placed, and body shape and behave similarity and even to their diets, sharks are fishes while dolphins are mammals as previously mentioned. The difference between the shark’s fin and dolphin’s fin is that the dolphin’s dorsal fin is curved backward toward the animal’s rear. It has an arc that is definite to its shape and has quite a sharp curved tip. A shark’s dorsal fin stands straight up and it is broad right at the animal’s back. The front edge of the fin is angled backward while the back edge is straight. These are some of the differences in their structure but their similarity is that they both have fins that help them navigate through the aquatic environments. The shaping of their fins were formed according to the feature environment they inhabited instead of inheriting it from a common ancestor. That is the shark uses his broad straight up fin to navigate in the depths of the cool, coastal waters. While the dolphin uses his curved backward fin in order to navigate in tropical, warm aquatic environments. 

The reason why the traits are relevant as analogous is because the dolphin derived from a common mammal ancestor while the shark derived from a common fish ancestor. Two different species that have similar qualities and behavior due to adjusting to the environment they were living in. it is said that Dolphins evolved from a land mammal that had even number of toes and also known as an artiodactyla. The great white shark evolved from Megalodon 50 feet long shark that also evolved from Cretolamna appendiculata which lived about 60 to 100 million years ago. This all happened due to convergent evolution is when two different species evolve functionally features known as “analogous structures.” Both these species have evolved analogous traits instead having it from a common ancestor. Their streamlines bodies, dorsal fins, flippers and pectoral fins are there for the same goal which is to swim quickly through the ocean and catch a prey to eat off of.