Ask Marilyn
Sunday's Column - October 19, 2008
Is there a difference between the “real” heat generated by a heating pad and the feeling of heat created by topical applications?
—D.M., Louisiana (city unknown)
Yes. Real heat increases the temperature of the affected area. Topical applications work in different ways. Many employ “counter-irritants” that cause increased blood flow to the local area, creating a feeling of warmth. One type is made from red pepper. It causes a burning sensation and depletes nearby nerve cells of a chemical that helps to relay pain impulses to the brain. Without this chemical, the neurons cannot transmit signals of pain, which brings relief.
If one product doesn’t work for your purpose, another may.
If you see birds on telephone or electric wires, they usually are facing the same direction. Why do they do this?
—John Farrell, Albuquerque, N.M.
Birds like to face into the wind. They land and take off that way, and facing windward helps keep their feathers unruffled.
When we use a washing machine, are the germs killed or just washed away?
—Alan Hardin (city unknown)
Ah, another illusion gone with your socks. Bacteria aren’t killed unless you’re using old-fashioned bleach. They aren’t all washed away, either. Lots of bacteria remain on your laundry. In fact, they redistribute themselves among everything in the load.
Marilyn vos Savant is listed in the Guinness Book of World Records Hall of Fame for "Highest IQ."
http://www.parade.com/askmarilyn/archive/Sundays-Column-10-19-08.html
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