Good friends = great medicine? Research says, "Yes!"

There has been a lot of research within the past decade or so looking at social ties and how it affects one's life. Having worked with a professor back in college who studied social relationships and health lead to learning about and participating in lots of studies on this topic. For example, did you know that studies have actually shown that happily married couples (as opposed to single, divorced/separated, or even especially unhappily married couples) tend to live longer? Well, it's true!

So when my professor from college posted this article* up on facebook, my first thought was, "Well, duh." But at the same time, the article is extremely interesting. It points out that people who have good/close friends not only live longer, but have a 50% better chance of survival, regardless of age, sex, health, etc, than those who don't have those close social ties. Even more interesting is that having poor or few social connections is like smoking several cigarettes a day, and is even worse than being obese and not exercising!

And do relatives count? Not really. Friends apparently tend to affect the longevity of your life better than your relatives or even your own children.

Moral of the story? Get out and make some new friends!

* http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/research-suggests-that-good-friends-may-actually-be-great-medicine/2011/03/07/ABMbvwV_story.html

Why is 98 degrees so hot?

My mother-in-law recently asked me an interesting question: If your body temperature is at 98.6 degrees, then why do you feel hot when the outside temperature is at 98 degrees? Shouldn't you feel neutral or comfortable at 98 degrees?

This, I thought, was an interesting question; one worth adding to 'Awesome Science'.

Heat is a by-product of the body's metabolic processes, and so our bodies are constantly radiating heat. When the atmospheric temperature is at a comfortable 68 degrees, our body is able to rid itself of the excess heat, and stay at a healthy 98 degrees. However, when the temperature drops to cold temperatures, such as freezing (or anything below that), our body looses heat at a rate that it cannot keep up with. The result: frost bite and hypothermia. Now, when the atmospheric temperature rises to levels which equal our internal body temperature, the body doesn't have anywhere to distribute the heat. Fortunately, our bodies have a backup coolant system - sweat. Perspiration allows us to cool off quickly and prevent overheating.

A Galapagos Island Bird

Blue-Footed Booby

Photograph by Tim Laman

To kick start this Awesome Science blog, here is an homage to Darwin, a bird from the Galapagos Islands. The Blue-Footed Booby (Yes that is its real name, no puns please) uses its blue feet to cover its eggs and help them stay warm. The male Blue-Footed Boobies are proud of their colorful feet and will intentionally display them during mating rituals. The females usually choose to mate with the males with the bluest feet.

Special Thanks to NationalGeographic.com

An Introduction...

I've recently realized that scientific literature has become too elitist and unaccessible to the layperson. So, with the help of some friends from different fields, I submit to the universe this website to publish our ideas and discoveries