Question Your World - Do we really need that much water?

Simple answer, yes!

The human body does some pretty exceptional work, but in order for it to function at optimal capacity it needs to be properly hydrated. Water is essential for all life and it's no wonder that our bodies need it for both physical and mental functions.



Water helps regulate your temperature, lubricates joints and muscles, and digestion! But did you know that the amount of water you drink has a direct impact on your brain?!?!

A properly hydrated body will yield a brain that has a stronger memory capacity, a level temperament, and will increase motivation! A lack of water will cause the brain to get slightly hydrated and reduce the oxygen flow to the cerebral center. Some scientists have also hypothesized that a dehydrated body will also have some temporarily shrunk neurons and receptors!!

So, remember to get in a good amount of water everyday, its good for you!

Here's some more info on relationship of water and your body!
Water!
also...
So, how much water do you need??

More “Turkey Day” Trivia: Thanksgiving dinner

Turkey meat:  white vs. dark - What causes the color difference between white and dark turkey meat? The type of muscle fiber determines the color of the meat. Dark turkey meat has slow contraction muscle fibers. Slow contraction muscle fibers, sometimes called slow twitch muscle fibers, are used for extended muscle contraction in endurance activities and are supplied with lots of blood vessels, mitochondria, and myoglobin pigments, which give the red color to the meat. White turkey meat, on the other hand, has fast twitch muscle fibers for short bursts of strength and speed. Fast twitch fibers have a poorer blood supply, and fewer mitochondria and myoglobin, and tire quickly.

Cranberries – Of all fresh fruits, cranberries contain the most phenols, a type of disease-fighting antioxidant. Phenols and polyphenols are strong antioxidants and many scientists believe antioxidants protect the heart.

Yams vs. sweet potatoes - A yam is not the same thing as a sweet potato. Although yams and sweet potatoes are both angiosperms (flowering plants), they are not related botanically. Yams, native to Africa and Asia, are a monocot (a plant having one embryonic seed leaf) and are related to lilies and grasses. Sweet Potatoes are a dicot (a plant having two embryonic seed leaves) and are in the morning glory family. Yams are starchier and dryer than sweet potatoes.

Pumpkin pie - Most pumpkin fillings are really custard-type fillings with eggs acting as "gelling agents". They're able to do this because proteins in the eggs unwind as they are beaten and hold the pumpkin and liquids in a gentle mesh. As it cooks, it coagulates or sets and forms a custard-like filling. If the filling is cooked too long, the protein network contracts and shrinks, causing the filling to crack across the top. To prevent the cracking, cook it a little less this year. Remove it from the oven while the center still jiggles slightly if you give it a gentle shake. It may look like it still needs a little more cooking, but remember because of latent heat, it will continue to cook after it is removed from the oven.

Question of the Week

The SunTrust Richmond Marathon is this Saturday, November 13, 2010.  NBC12's Andrew Freiden has posted the following weather forecast for race day:

•  7 am - low to mid-40's, mostly sunny
•  Noon - near 60, partly sunny
•  3 pm - mid-60's, partly sunny

What is ideal race weather?



Answer:  Ideal running weather -

• Temperature - runners have different preferences but generally prefer low 40's to mid-50's. Intense muscle activity generates a lot of heat; cooler temperatures help prevent overheating.
• Humidity - low to moderate. Lower humidities mean less water vapor and more oxygen with each breath. The runner's body does not have to work as hard to get enough oxygen to his/her muscles.
• Wind - 5 mph. A slight breeze is better than no wind at all. The breeze helps keep the runner cool by evaporating sweat from the runner's skin. As for direction, a tail wind is always welcome.
• Time of day - morning. Morning means less glare off cars and pavement and less wind, also less traffic.

Why Hot Sauce is Hot…..

By Fernando Luna Vera

Ph.D. Candidate, Chemistry Department, VCU

Science Museum of Virginia Volunteer

“Can you please pass me the hot sauce?” a friend of mine asked. “This one?” I replied, holding up and showing him a warm spinach dip cup. “No! The spicy one,” he said. As I passed it to him, I mentally wondered an almost childish question, “Why do we call it hot sauce if it is not really hot…nor is it even served warm!” Appreciating and feeling the taste of food involves a complex mechanism that uses the sense of taste, smell and touch. This rise of sensations and perceptions sparked by food requires hundreds of chemical signals and our brain acting as traffic officer to control them.

After you bite a spicy taco your body can recognize that familiar, pungency sensation thanks to a well equipped network of sensors called neurons. Neurons, as do all animal cells, contain a boundary layer called a membrane, where specific receptors are allocated. These receptors are like the geometric figures on the surface of a shape sorter toy which recognizes specific shapes. Certain neurons, called nociceptors, have the specialized job of sensing pain. These kinds of neurons contain a specific receptor for capsaicin, the molecule found in high concentration within chili peppers. One can image then, capsaicin molecules traveling to the tongue and getting caught later by the nociceptors, which immediately after recognizing them, trigger an electrical signal that travels to the brain and makes us aware of the irritating sensation of the hot sauce. That specific capsaicin receptor is called TRPV-1.

But why does our brain read the signal produced by capsaicin as an increment in temperature? An experiment performed in 2000 by scientist of UCLA helped us to better understand this outcome. By using genetic techniques, they “knocked out” the gene that produces the capsaicin receptor (TRPV-1) from a group of mice and compared it with other group that still had the TRPV-1. After exposing the two groups to capsaicin, the one lacking TRPV-1 showed to be insensitive to the irritant substance, as expected. However, surprisingly the same group showed a high insensibility to temperatures above 43ºC, which is when pain is normally sensed. This result implied that the same receptor for the chili peppers irritant molecule is the same receptor for sensing high temperature. So when neurons bind capsaicin, the brain interprets the signal produced as an increase in temperature, like something “hot” is touching your tongue.

Additionally, neurons possess certain receptors called TRM8, which are activated by low temperatures (> 12 ºC). These receptors also happen to be sensitive to menthol, the compound found in high concentration within peppermint and used in products like mouthwashes and toothpaste. By then using the same mechanism for associating capsaicin and hot temperatures, the menthol bond to a TRM8 receptor sends a signal that tricks the brain; therefore, by just the taste of mint, makes you feel cool!

References:

http://student.biology.arizona.edu/honors2007/group12/home12.html

Sven-Eric Jordt, David D McKemy and David Julius, Current Opinion in Neurobiology, 2003, 13:487–492.

M. J. Caterina, A. Lefßer, A. B. Malmberg, W. J. Martin, J. Trafton, K. R. Petersen-Zeitz, M. Koltzenburg, A. I. Basbaum, D. Julius, Science, 2000, 288, 306-313

Pizza Garden

I've just returned from visiting our first two of five Richmond Public Schools participating in the Science Museum of Virginia's pizza garden. Today, John B. Cary Elementary and Maymont Elementary planted basil in their classrooms. When they've finished their SOL testing in early June, they'll visit the museum to transplant their seedlings into our on-site pizza garden. Bellevue Elementary, William Fox Elementary and Linwood Holton Elementary will also participate in this endeavor. Third grade students from these schools will be planting hot peppers, tomatoes and green peppers respectively.

It is the museum's hope that this project will inspire a new generation of gardeners. This project will hopefully allow kids to see where everday food items (such as pizza) come from. Perhaps it will even inspire some of them to pay more attention to their diet as well! I had several students tell me today that they had never grown anything from seed, so it's very exciting to be a part of that "first" in their lives.

Turkey daze...

Do you fall into a satiated stupor after Thanksgiving dinner? Have you heard that eating turkey makes you sleepy? Turkey contains tryptophan, an amino acid often blamed for the post-meal lethargy. The human body uses tryptophan to make serotonin. Studies have shown that serotonin, a type of neurotransmitter, induces sleep in nonhuman mammals and scientists believe it may do the same in humans. But don’t blame the turkey for your drowsy state. To enter the brain, tryptophan must hitch a ride through the blood-brain barrier on specialized protein transporters. Turkey contains five other amino acids in addition to tryptophan, all vying for a ride. Since tryptophan is the scarcest of the amino acids in turkey, it usually loses out in the competition.
What probably makes you sleepy after Thanksgiving dinner is dessert. Carbohydrates increase brain serotonin even though carbs contain no tryptophan. Here’s how: sweet desserts trigger your pancreas to produce insulin, a hormone that helps cells absorb glucose and amino acids. Insulin has little effect on tryptophan, but it does allow your cells to absorb other amino acids. With the others out of the way, tryptophan catches a ride into the brain and steps up the brain’s production of serotonin. Hence, the urge to snooze…
Even in the absence of dessert, you may find yourself nodding off after Thanksgiving dinner. Loading the stomach with food stretches the small intestine, causing sleepiness. All that blood going to the stomach and intestines means less blood for the brain and muscles. And then there are the beverages. Do you enjoy wine or beer with your meal? Drinks containing alcohol can also cause drowsiness. So enjoy Thanksgiving dinner but please don’t blame the bird for your turkey daze!

Another helping of cranberries, please...

Did you know, of all fresh fruits, cranberries contain the most phenols, a type of disease-fighting antioxidant? Phenols and polyphenols are strong antioxidants and many scientists believe antioxidants protect the heart. Uncooked berries, dried berries and pure juice are best because processing, storage and heating reduces antioxidant levels, but cranberry sauce still contains lots of antioxidants. So enjoy your extra serving of cranberry sauce…

Which vegetable is #1?

Would you believe it’s the sweet potato? According to nutritionists at the Center for Science and Public Interest, the sweet potato ranked #1 in nutrition when compared to other vegetables. Foods were given points for their content of dietary fiber, naturally occurring sugars and complex carbohydrates, protein, vitamins A and C, iron and calcium. Points were deducted for fat content, sodium, cholesterol, added refined sugars and caffeine. The sweet potato, with a score of 184, easily beat out the second place vegetable, the white potato, by more than 100 points. It’s easy to see why: sweet potatoes have twice the daily allowance of vitamin A, 42% of the vitamin C recommendation and 4 times the RDA of beta carotene. So this Thanksgiving Day, enjoy this yummy and good-for-you treat!