NewScientist The Last Word - Tag 'human' details

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If I tap my nose with my finger I only register a single touch, yet the sensation from nerves in my nose has only a few centimetres to travel to my brain, while the one from my finger tip has to travel about a metre up my arm and shoulder. Is this an illusion arranged by my brain, or is the brain unable to distinguish between two events so close together in time? Can anybody explain?Geoff Lane, Bury, Lancashire, UK

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Asked by damian
on 2007-10-16 17:10:23

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Categories: Human Body.

Tags: human body.

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Crucial cravings

I was diagnosed with cancer in 1994 and have been treated for several recurrences since. A pattern has emerged that, when I am having chemotherapy or am on high doses of steroids, I develop intense cravings for certain foods that I don't normally eat. These include a very high-fat diet, fried food (especially eggs) and a craving for ginger. There is a well-established timing to these cravings: I wake for a fatty food snack at 2 am and ginger around 4 am, for example. I also crave various vegetables in large amounts, and have bought several foods that I had never tasted before but knew immediately that I wanted when I encountered them in the supermarket. Interestingly, the relief I experience on eating the things I crave is instantaneous - there is no time for any absorption or metabolism to occur. Is my body telling me that it knows what it needs for the healing process to begin? Or is something else at work?Wesley Finegan, Stenhousemuir, Stirlingshire, UK

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Asked by damian
on 2007-10-16 17:06:08

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Categories: Human Body.

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Flight sight

A few days ago, as the plane I was travelling in was manoeuvring and I was looking out of a window, the sun shone directly into my eyes. I shut my eyes but the sun had created a very strong "after-image", which was bright yellow with red edges, which was presumably in my retina. I kept my eyes closed and watched the after-image. Over a period of about 3 minutes, the central area changed from the initial bright yellow to bright green, then to a dull red and finally a faint, pale blue before disappearing. What did the colour sequence indicate?Larry Stoter, By email, no address supplied

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Asked by damian
on 2007-10-16 17:05:54

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Organ farms Human cells are continually dying and being replaced, but how much time does it take an entire organ, such as the liver, to replace itself? Also how long does it take to replace all the cells in the human skeleton, and how many times would this process be completed in an average lifespan?Colleen Scott, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
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Asked by damian
on 2007-10-16 16:50:16

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Expect pain in knee area

I damaged my knee ligaments in a skiing accident about two years ago. Ever since then I have had what I describe as a "weather forecasting knee". Before it rains I always experience pain in my knee. This happens in both summer and winter and does not seem to be related to humidity. I am not the only person to have reported this. Why does my knee hurt before it rains and, more interestingly, how does it know? How does it detect the onset of rain?Debbie Reid, Chalfont St Giles, Buckinghamshire, UK

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Asked by damian
on 2007-10-16 16:50:04

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Wine whine As little as half a glass of certain white wines causes me to feel very drunk and come out in a rash on my face and chest - and I feel very odd the next day. By a lengthy process of elimination, I have worked out that the culprits are always wines from South Africa. I don't react to wines from other countries. So why does South African wine cause this?Clare Souter, London, UK
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Asked by damian
on 2007-10-16 16:48:33

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Categories: Domestic Science, Human Body.

Tags: human body, domestic science.

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Dive! Dive! In films a hero often evades bullets by jumping into a river or lake. How far below the surface do they need to dive?Christian Dawson, Kegworth, Leicestershire, UK
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Asked by damian
on 2007-10-16 16:48:15

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Smackeroony Why are lips made of different skin to the rest of your face?Richard Kennaway Norwich, UK
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Asked by damian
on 2007-10-16 16:47:54

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Down the pan What makes faeces so sticky? They can even resist being washed off porcelain by a torrent of water.Alf Cousins, One Tree Hill, South Australia
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Asked by damian
on 2007-10-16 16:47:26

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Greybeard, blondebeard Why are there so many different colours of hair in my beard?Josh Phillips, Hebden Bridge, West Yorkshire, UK
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Asked by damian
on 2007-10-16 16:35:32