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Archive for the ‘general science’ Category

Blood donors give about a pint of blood without ill effects. Yet the same amount of blood pouring from a wound seems pretty serious. How much blood can we lose without danger?

answer:
The average person can lose a pint of blood without danger, and that is why this is the amount usually chosen for blood donating. However, the loss of blood from a wound should always be taken seriously. At a blood donating center, a pint of blood is given under carefully controlled conditions. In the case of accidental bleeding, not only would it be hard to judge the amount of blood being lost, but there is the added risk of infection from germs that may enter a wound. It has been shown that the body can lose up to a third of its blood supply (about four pints for the average person) without apparent serious effect, but the loss of half the body’s blood is almost always fatal, and even the loss of two pints of blood will often cause shock.

The average adult has about five to six quarts of blood, flowing through some 60,000 miles of blood vessels. The blood makes a complete journey round the body about once a minute, carrying water and oxygen to all the cells and collecting waste products from them, circulating hormones, and distributing antibodies to fight infection.

Does a big person have more blood than a small one?

Yes. We have about one pint of blood for every 12 pounds of body weight. And for every excess pound of weight we gain, the body has to build an extra mile of blood vessels— another sobering thought for the overweight!

My wife claims she doesn’t have a G spot. Is that possible?

answer:
Not if she’s a woman. We all have one. However, not all women are responsive to G-spot stimulation, and some simply don’t enjoy it. Others say G-spot orgasms are much more intense than those achieved through clitoral stimulation. I think you and your wife should go find her G-spot. Call it a treasure hunt minus the pirate’s eye patch. Here’s what you’re looking for: a small bean-size spot of spongy tissue located in the front wall of the vagina, almost directly below the urethra. You don’t need a GPS; just explore the area with your finger by applying firm, rhythmic pressure upward. How do you know when you’ve found it? You’ll feel it swell—as large as a dime—when it’s stimulated. Besides, she’ll let you know with oohs and aahs.

I’m relocating to a new city. How do I find the best public school for my kids?

answer:
Start your search at great schools.net Enter the desired city in the search window and you’ll get a list of all the local schools, which you can then compare side by side in academics, state test scores, student-to-teacher ratio, and economic level. There are even parent reviews to help you further narrow the field. Once you find a few schools that sound appealing, visit them in person. “Test scores are only part of the equation,” says Brandi Roth, Ph.D., coauthor of Choosing the Right School for Your Child. “You have to get a feel for the school.”

Ask pointed questions during your visits: (1) What is the annual rate of staff turnover? Anything higher than 10 percent and you should look into the reason why, says Roth. (2) How qualified is the staff? Look for an average of 3 years’ experience, and ask where they were educated. A study by the Illinois Education Research Council found that in high schools with poorly qualified teachers Cudged by licensing exam scores, colleges attended, and years of experience), only 15 percent of students were prepared for college. In schools with highly qualified teachers, that number rose to 50 percent.

Also, “notice whether your questions are met with candid answers,” says Roth. “If they’re not, think about how they’ll disseminate information to you in the future.”

My wife and I are having a son. I want him circumcised. She doesn’t. Is one way better than the other, healthwise?

answer:
No. Some physicians might tell you that circumcision can prevent urinary-tract infections in infants and reduce the risk of penile cancer and STD transmission in adults, but the situation isn’t that clear-cut, so to speak. “After looking at 40 years of research, we found that the health benefits are not so significant as to create a national recommendation to circumcise,” says Alan Fleischman, M.D., a member of the American Academy of Pediatrics’ task force on circumcision.

Of much greater concern are the procedure’s sexual repercussions. When a doctor performs a circumcision, “he removes up to 50 percent of the skin on the penile shaft—skin that would normally grow into about 12 square inches of highly erogenous tissue,” says Ronald Goldman, Ph.D., executive director of the Circumcision Resource Center (circumcision.org), in Boston. “Men circumcised as adults describe the difference in pleasure as seeing in black-and-white as opposed to color.” Studies also show, says Goldman, that the experience can have long-term psychological repercussions, ranging from sexual phobias to posttraumatic stress disorder. That said, if you yourself are circumcised or support the procedure on religious grounds, you might still want to lobby your wife in favor of circumcision. “Boys who grow up cut differently than their fathers or community members can be affected emotionally and psychologically,” says Fleisch-man. “That needs to be taken into account when the final choice is made.”

Every restaurant has its own policy, so call ahead. Some will allow you to bring your own bottle, some will charge a cork age fee, and some will flat-out refuse. Also, make sure you’re not bringing a bottle that the restaurant sells. This is especially important if the eatery has an extensive list, says David Gordon, the wine director at Manhattan’s Tribeca Grill, which boats a wine list 1,700 selections deep. “When a restaurant has a vast list, you should make sure you’re bringing a special bottle for a special occasion,” says Gordon. After all, you don’t want the corkage fee (typically, $20 to more than $75 per bottle) to trump the price of the wine.

There have been many claims that there is such a thing as female ejaculation, but it was always dismissed as urination during intercourse. Newer evidence has shown that higher levels of a compound—prostatic acid phosphatase—have been found in patients who claim to have female ejaculation. This compound is found in high levels in male ejaculate and originates in the prostate.

Researchers have taken an anatomical approach to the issue of whether prostatelike components are in female ejaculate. They believe that if women ejaculate a fluid that is not urine, then it must be coming from someplace other than the bladder. The most likely source was thought to be the female paraurethral, or Skene’s, glands. Autopsy tests of Skene’s glands have found substances identical to those found in the prostate. Some experts now call these glands the “female prostate.”

In a paper from Cairo University, the authors investigated the hypothesis that the vagina generates electric waves that effect vaginal contraction during penile thrusting. They found that electric waves could be recorded from the vagina. They also postulated that there was a vaginal pacemaker that seemed to represent the G-spot, which is claimed to be a small area of erotic sensitivity in the vagina.

The G-spot is simply a small area located on the upper wall of the vagina, toward the belly, about 2 to 3 inches from the vaginal opening. The G-spot was named in honor of Ernst Grafenberg, a German physician who, in the 1950s, wrote an article that mentioned an erotic zone on the anterior wall of the vagina that would swell during sexual stimulation.

There are various opinions on the best way to find the G-spot. Some women say that being on top during intercourse works best. Others swear by rear entry as the best way to hit the G-spot. Some even say that because of its location, a shorter, smaller penis may actually be more effective at reaching the G-spot, A clue to its location may be that some women feel a sudden urge to urinate when their partner hits the G-spot, which is located right near the urethra.

Straight from the department of psychology at the University of Glasgow in Scotland comes a paper titled “Alcohol consumption increases attractiveness ratings of opposite-sex faces: a possible third route to risky sex.” Don’t ask us why, but science supports the fact that beer goggles do exist. Feel free to use this paper to excuse your bad behavior.

Oysters are full of vitamins and minerals, especially zinc. Zinc controls progesterone levels, which have a positive effect on the libido. Other foods and products that are thought to get your mojo working include alcohol, animal crackers (but only if consumed during sex), Champagne, chocolate, Spanish fly, and strawberries.