1

New Theories / Re: What is ...Science ?

« on: 06/11/2013 17:04:27 »

All i was saying is that reality as a whole is not just material physical , as modern science assumes it to be, thanks to materialism : not everything can be explained just in terms of physics and  chemistry , or just by the laws of physics ,or just by cause and effect .....: see the modern maths of chaos ,for example .

This is just semantics right?
If in the future, some aspect of our reality are to be explained outside of physics and chemistry, you would still have to give it a name right? For argument's sake, let's say reincarnation, afterlife, the soul, etc. will be explained outside the laws of physics and chemistry and this branch of science is henceforth known as "divinistry" or whatever you want to name it, and science identifies some kind of transmission vectors to travel in dimensions we don't even account for today. Would you not shift your definition of 'materialization' to include divinistry next to physics and chemistry and start your discussion all over again, stating that "Not everything can be explained by the laws of physics, chemistry and divinistry!" Or would you rest your case and accept that science does in fact explain everything?

2

Plant Sciences, Zoology & Evolution / Re: How do I germinate a coconut?

« on: 06/11/2013 15:37:41 »

Hey jules,

Roots generally don't like light, so turn your nut in a way that the root is in as much shade as possible.
Also, the roots should not be too wet or too dry.. Too wet and mold or fungus might appear, and the root 'lacks motivation' to grow further in a quest for moisture. Too dry and it will shrivel away

3

Plant Sciences, Zoology & Evolution / Re: Which are stronger by mass, mammals, or reptiles?

« on: 06/11/2013 15:09:30 »

In the arctic regions, you can bet your money on the mammal

4

Cells, Microbes & Viruses / Re: Do fat cells disappear over time?

« on: 30/08/2012 12:42:28 »

Nope, the number of adipocytes (fat cells) stays pretty constant throught your entire life, even if you stay slim for a number of years

5

Physiology & Medicine / Re: What Would Happen If All The Iron In the Body Was Immediately Removed ?

« on: 30/08/2012 12:32:54 »

Iron is a critical component in Hemoglobin, a protein composed molecule in Red Blood cells. If the body would instantly lose all it's iron contents, one of the consequences would be the partial unfolding of Hemoglobin molecules and they would lose their ability to exchange O₂ at the blood-lung barrier or hold on to the O₂ in the bloodstream. Basically, your whole body would start to become oxygen deprived and die.

6

Physiology & Medicine / Re: What is the physiology of fitness?

« on: 01/06/2012 16:34:44 »

many thanks.

 What changes are there in the body when someones stamina is increased? Are they physical changes?

Yes:
- Your resting metabolism goes up, meaning that if you are fitter, you're even burning more calories while doing nothing. This is because the muscle cells require more "maintenance energy" than fat cells.
- Your heart rate will go down. I believe this has to do with the fact that  O₂ <-> CO₂ exchange in your lungs happens in a more efficient way (read: bigger surface) when you're fit. This allows your heart rate to slow down while maintaining the amount of O₂ transported throughout your body.
- Your bone density will increase, effectively slowing down any osteoporosis processes if they would be present, because you will put more stress on your skeleton by living an active life.
- Exercising releases endorphin, which make you happy and cause the 'runner's high' symptoms, giving you a generally better feeling about yourself.
- Your self perception will improve and you will gain some self respect and self confidence (might be physical changes in your brain

just be careful not to overdo it in the beginning and give your body some time to adjust if you're changing your life style.

7

Technology / Re: What are thermoelectric generators (TEGs)? How do they work?

« on: 15/05/2012 12:23:17 »

So can we build this thing on the surface of the moon, which always has a hot side and a cold side (except during lunar eclipse maybe) and use it to power a lunar base?

We could start small, close to a pole, and make a bigger system closer to lunar equator later on?

8

General Science / Re: Bucket of gross stuff

« on: 15/05/2012 07:22:46 »

How about rotten unboiled eggs! They're pretty gooey, non toxic and smell disgusting!
you could maybe even get them for free at some places?

9

Chemistry / Re: Can I create a real molecule from my polymod set?

« on: 09/05/2012 13:40:08 »

Yes, you can create for example ethanol, which is fairly easy.
Take one C and put 3 H's and one other C on it. On the second C you put an additional 2 H's and one O. On the O you put another H and you have ethanol, which is the alcohol you find in alcoholic beverages...

@BC: I think he made a typo and means Molymod, a ball-and-stick modeling kit

10

Just Chat! / Re: A question for the site

« on: 09/05/2012 10:07:59 »

Because math is not science, it's a tool :p

11

Cells, Microbes & Viruses / Re: What is the difference between cytokinesis and mitosis?

« on: 09/05/2012 09:50:05 »

What cells are supposed to do this?   Mitosis is the division of the nucleus, home to DNA, while cytokinesis is the division of the actual cell and dividing up its contents.   So if this happened you'd have a cell with  two nuclei, and therefore twice the DNA it's supposed to have.   I wouldn't think this could happen.

Well you have the syncytia in skeletomuscular cells, but they arise from fusion of uninuclear cells to become polynuclear, not mitosis without cytokinesis..

Maybe the topic starter is talking about a pathological process of cytokinesis inhibition?

12

Physiology & Medicine / Re: Can cells be radio controlled?

« on: 09/05/2012 09:43:24 »

Undoubtedly, though, while one is tinkering with genes, one could add the plant genes to produce caffeine, or cocaine for that matter.  Hopefully some mad scientist doesn't decide to make a drugged up society.

Speaking of plant genes... Imagine what would happen if we introduced a working chlorophyll system to our skin. We would become (little) green men, able to survive much longer on water only

13

Physiology & Medicine / Re: What does a blood pressure reading mean?

« on: 09/05/2012 09:37:29 »

Basically, diastolic BP is the pressure of the blood on your vascular system 'between' heart beats, or the arterial pressure if your heart would not be beating.
Systolic BP is the pressure right after a heart beat radiating from the heart through arteries -> arterioles -> cappillaries in which the BP get's reduced to just above zero when it enters the venous system.
The systolic BP 'moves your blood forward', the diastolic BP is the 'static BP'.

The arterial system is a system of flexible stretchable pipes. Through various causes, your arterial system may become less flexible/stretchable and more rigid/stiff. This causes hypertension.

14

Technology / Re: Could we defend ourselves today?

« on: 09/05/2012 09:26:32 »

I don't know.  If it was my property, I suppose I would consider the importance of National Security and Olympic Safety.  However, I would not take the idea of militarization of private property lightly.

If it was my property, I'd charge rent for my roof top

15

Technology / Re: What does "more torque" do to a car's performance?

« on: 09/05/2012 09:24:15 »

peppercorn, before as well as after chipping I was obsessed with getting maximum range out of one tank of gas, so my driving style was similar, with the exception that I'm accelerating a bit faster and smoother to cruising speed after the chipping, because the chipping made that possible
My previous post was not a comparison pre- and post-chip. It was a comparison in cruising speed 120Km/h vs. 110Km/h on motorway, both post-chipping. The range increase of this test is however much bigger than the range increase of chipping..
Oh well, up to now, I'm convinced that chipping my car was a good idea. There may be some placebo effect, although there's hard data as well, and I believe that in ~ two years (conservative estimate), I will have return on investment followed by actual profit afterwards...

16

Technology / Re: What does "more torque" do to a car's performance?

« on: 08/05/2012 07:48:01 »

Hi guys,

I did another test with some very good results. I expected some fuel economy improvement, but not this much..
In Belgium, motorway speed limit is 120Km/h. Now I did a full tank with maximum speed 110Km/h on the meter (which is about 102Km/h in reality). This increased my range from pump to pump from ~1100Km to ~1450Km (!!)
I also noticed that it impacted my work-home commute time with less than 5 minutes, and I must admit, I'm driving with a lot less stress caused by "slow cars, get out of my way!" situations

I think I'll stick to my new max. speed from now on...

17

Technology / Re: Could we defend ourselves today?

« on: 08/05/2012 07:27:38 »

Amendment III
Quartering of soldiers
No Soldier shall, in time of peace be quartered in any house, without the consent of the Owner, nor in time of war, but in a manner to be prescribed by law.

The way that article reads, it sounds like the British residents of the apartment complex are being TOLD that their property will be used.

Well, in this case it's not a soldier (person), but a SAM (machine), and it's not in the house, it's on the roof..

You think the government will just hand out sophisticated anti-aircraft missile systems like candy?
These armaments will be monitored 24/7 by soldiers.

Okay, admitted. They'll probably will not be unsupervised. So in order to compley with this amendment, they should put the soldiers on the rooftop by airlift or huge ladder from the outside of the building. Of course, it's still possible that they chose this particular building because it's state owned, and the tenants are paying rent to the government. In this case, there is no issue since the owner of the building will obviously consent to soldier access

18

Technology / Re: Could we defend ourselves today?

« on: 07/05/2012 06:47:22 »

Amendment III
Quartering of soldiers

No Soldier shall, in time of peace be quartered in any house, without the consent of the Owner, nor in time of war, but in a manner to be prescribed by law.

The way that article reads, it sounds like the British residents of the apartment complex are being TOLD that their property will be used.

Well, in this case it's not a soldier (person), but a SAM (machine), and it's not in the house, it's on the roof..

19

Physiology & Medicine / Re: Can our own DNA cause of fatal inflammation?

« on: 07/05/2012 06:27:22 »

Don't think so grizelda. DNA in our food gets digested and reduced to building blocks that are used to synthesize our own DNA in new cells.

20

Physiology & Medicine / Re: Can cells be radio controlled?

« on: 07/05/2012 06:24:47 »

Yea my thoughts exactly. You would not want a massive uncontrolled insulin release and crash every time you enter a venue with free wifi for example

Sleep music would be possible, triggering synthesis and release of melatonin.
As for the caffeine alarm clock, that'd be a bit more difficult, because a human body can create insulin or melatonin, but it can't create caffeine..