WHY THINGS OCCUR IN NATURE THE WAY THEY DO??? Share
HAVE YOU EVER WONDERED WHY THINGS OCCUR IN NATURE THE WAY THEY DO?????????????????????????
Why doesn’t the stomach digest itself? Why do we get ‘butterflies’ in our stomach? Why is body temperature measured under the tongue?
The science underlying such common occurrences may not be known to all of us. But don’t worry I’m here to answer many of these peculiar questions of yours………..
- WHY DOESN’T THE STOMACH DIGEST ITSELF?
The stomach is a muscular bag like organ that digests food with strong acids contained in gastric juices produced by glands in the stomach. To protect itself from being digested along with the food, the stomach lining is coated with a thick layer of mucous produced by mucous cells. This mildly alkaline mucous secretion protects the stomach against the acidic digestive juices.
If the stomach lining is damaged, the stomach sheds off the cells which are quickly replaced with new ones. In the severe cases where the protective mucous secretions are inadequate, the stomach lining gets damaged resulting in a painful stomach ulcer.
- WHY DO WE GET ‘BUTTERFLIES’ IN OUR STOMACH?
The peculiar sensation many of us feel in the stomach before taking an exam or facing an interview is termed as ‘butterflies’. This feeling arises from the signals sent by a dense network of nerves in the gut which almost behaves like our brain. Known as the enteric nervous system, it is located within the sheaths of tissue lining the food pipe, stomach and small intestine. Like the brain, the enteric nervous system also gets upset under stress and releases certain chemicals which produce the peculiar sensation.
- WHY IS BODY TEMPERATURE MEASURED UNDER THE TONGUE?
Body temperature can be measured by placing the thermometer under the tongue, in the armpits. The basic idea is to place the heat sensitive bulb of the thermometer in close contact with the part of the body which is not exposed as that may lower the reading. It is desirable that the thermometer be enclosed on all sides by the body part. The armpits are easily accessible and the fear of broken thermometers is also less. So this a preferred site for children. For adults, however the underside of the tongue is preferred, ads the skin is very delicate here, heat conduction is better and thermometer reading is accurate.
- WHY DO MOST MEN BECOME BALD BY OLD AGE?
Both men and women may be affected by temporary hair loss due to stress, skin infection, disease, drug or radiation induced side effects. Permanent baldness, seen mostly in men, is genetically governed. The gene for baldness is present on the X-chromosome. However it does not express it self if a normal version is present on the partner chromosome. Since women have two X-chromosomes and men only one, therefore it is unlikely(though not impossible) for a women to become bald