~ Things You Didn't Know About You ~

[MysteRy]

Things You Didn't Know About You







The human body is a great, sweaty, fluid-filled machine, moving and mixing chemicals with precision and coordination, making everything from memories to mucus. Here some of the complex, beautiful or just plain gross mysteries of how you function.



Your Stomach Secretes Corrosive Acid



There's one dangerous liquid no airport security can confiscate from you: It's in your gut.
Your stomach cells secrete hydrochloric acid, a corrosive compound used to treat metals in the industrial world.
 It can pickle steel, but mucous lining the stomach wall keeps this poisonous liquid safely in the digestive system, breaking down lunch.

[MysteRy]

Things You Didn't Know About You








Body Position Affects Your Memory



Can't remember your anniversary, hubby?
Try getting down on one knee.
Memories are highly embodied in our senses.
 A scent or sound may evoke a distant episode from one's childhood.
The connections can be obvious (a bicycle bell makes you remember your old paper route) or inscrutable.
A recent study helps decipher some of this embodiment.
 An article in the January 2007 issue of Cognition reports that episodes from your past are remembered faster and better while in a body position similar to the pose struck during the event.

[MysteRy]

Things You Didn't Know About You








Bones Break (Down) to Balance Minerals



In addition to supporting the bag of organs and muscles that is our body, bones help regulate our calcium levels.
Bones contain both phosphorus and calcium, the latter of which is needed by muscles and nerves.
 If the element is in short supply, certain hormones will cause bones to break downeupping calcium levels in the bodyeuntil the appropriate extracellular concentration is reached.

[MysteRy]

Things You Didn't Know About You








Much of a Meal is Food For Thought



Though it makes up only 2 percent of our total body weight, the brain demands 20 percent of the body's oxygen and calories.
To keep our noggin well-stocked with resources, three major cerebral arteries are constantly pumping in oxygen.
 A blockage or break in one of them starves brain cells of the energy they require to function, impairing the functions controlled by that region.
This is a stroke.

[MysteRy]

Things You Didn't Know About You








Cell Hairs Move Mucus



Most cells in our bodies sport hair-like organelles called cilia that help out with a variety of functions, from digestion to hearing.
In the nose, cilia help to drain mucus from the nasal cavity down to the throat.
 Cold weather slows down the draining process, causing a mucus backup that can leave you with snotty sleeves.
Swollen nasal membranes or condensation can also cause a stuffed schnozzle.

[MysteRy]

Things You Didn't Know About You








  Your Skin Has Four Colors



All skin, without coloring, would appear creamy white.
Near-surface blood vessels add a blush of red.
A yellow pigment also tints the canvas.
Lastly, sepia-toned melanin, created in response to ultraviolet rays, appears black in large amounts.
These four hues mix in different proportions to create the skin colors of all the peoples of Earth.