Meeting new people when I came to Penn State was fun to do especially when I learned what my friends intended on majoring in. One of my very best friends plans to become a pediatric surgeon and that is something that simply amazes me. I thought about how that would be a very stressful occupation that has its pros and cons. It has to be very tricky to go into a surgery knowing that you only have so much time to save a life and if you run out of time you

could potentially kill a person. This was very frightening until I came across a new science that is giving surgeons more time to work without as many risks to the patient. It is called putting a patient in suspended animation.

In the process of suspended animation, a patients body is practically frozen almost to death. They do this by replacing their blood with a solution that cools the body rapidly. By replacing the blood, not only do they cool the body much faster, but they also eliminate the chance of losing the patient due to blood loss. A person can not survive without blood because it carries the oxygen that the cells need to survive but when the body is at a frozen state the cells stop working and do not need the oxygen to function. The salt water solution that is pumped through the body stimulates the body and give the surgeons more time to work on serious injuries or health issues.

Before this discovery, when people would have major health complications, they would be put on ice. Being surrounded by ice stimulated the body in order to save the brain from major damage. The brain damage would come from it not getting enough oxygen because the blood is going elsewhere in the body and either exiting the body or getting stopped there. Irreversible brain damage will start to begin within 5 minutes when the brain is deprived of oxygen. This is why a body is put on ice after certain medical emergencies; to save the brain. Now that we have suspended animation we are able to preserve the brain for longer periods of time because it no longer needs oxygen when it is working.

Suspended animation was found when Dr. Peter Rhee was asked by the military to “find a way
of preserving wounded victims before they reached the hospital”. With what he came up with trauma victims of all sorts will be given more time to receive the proper treatment for their condition.

Doctors performed the first suspended animation trial that was put to the test in May of 2014, but I could not find any information on whether the trial worked or not. I did find that they have to perform numerous trials on humans before it becomes practiced in hospitals. I think that the trials will/should be performed on those who are in a life or death situation. I believe that those in a situation like we talked about the other day when we talked about the cancer treatments and who should receive them. I believe that those people who have no other option, like the kids with cancer from class, should receive the treatments.

This makes me think about what we could do now that we have brought the long fictional idea from Star Wars to reality. It makes me wonder how long we can preserve a person, if we can suspend their life and bring them back at any time. Can we choose when we want to be alive and when we don’t? If a person has numerous failing organs, can we preserve them until we have the donor organs needed to save their life? Can we escape death with what we call suspended animation?

The possibilities are endless and I am sure that science will answer my questions in the future once the science of suspended animation furthers in research.

Many of people my age have lost a loved one, if not a few. After two recent deaths in my family, I have noticed a significant decrease in health of the persons widowed spouse. I have heard that people have died from a broken heart but I thought that this was said to ease the pain of not one but two losses in a family in a short amount of time. It made me think if it was true and that people really can die from a broken heart, so I decided to look into it.

It turns out that a broken heart is an actual medical condition that those who lose a loved one can go through. Stress-induced cardiomyopathy is the technical name for broken heart syndrome. The stress that comes with the loss of a family member can take a turn on your body for the worse. The stress will show through intense chest pain, changes in blood clotting, blood pressure, and heart rate control. Researchers are finding that If a person is going through broken heart syndrome, a part of their heart enlarges. Because of this enlargement, it doesn’t pump as well while the rest of the heart works normally and sometimes more forcefully to make up for what the enlarged part is not doing. A major problem with this disease is that it can lead to heart muscle failure which can eventually lead to death. When the heart can not supply the body with enough blood to function, it can start to have irregular heart beats that if not treated immediately can lead to death. There is no cure for this syndrome but there are treatments and therapies that you can undergo to decrease your symptoms and return you back to health.

There was a study conducted St. George’s University of London in the UK that shows the chances of experiencing heart problems after a partner’s death doubles within the first 30 days. The study was a controlled experiment with those who were over the age of 60 and still had their partner and the test group had lose their partner. Within the 30 days of the trial 16 per 10,000 people who were in the test group experienced heart attacks or strokes. The controlled group only had 8 per 10,000 have heart attacks or strokes. This study shows that those over the age of 60 who go through the loss of a loved one are two times as likely to suffer from a heart attack or stroke.

There was a case report done on stressed induced cardiomyopathy that involved a women in her 70s. She suffered severe chest pains 30 minutes after her husband passed away. Because her test results did not show obstructive coronary arteries, the doctors diagnosed her with stress induced cardiomyopathy instead of a heart attack. The difference between the two is heart attacks occur because of blockages in the the arteries that supply the heart with blood. The lack of blood reaching the heart leaves permanent damage to the organ. In stress induced cardiomyopathy, the cell are temporarily stunned and will recover from the adrenaline rush that is presented when there is a sudden abundance of stress on the body.

So, my idea of death by love is completely possible and normal. It was amazing to find out that there was an actual syndrome related to having a “broken heart” and that it is not just a saying. I mentioned earlier that the short term effect to this syndrome is heart muscle failure and that it is possible to recover from this syndrome. My new question has to deal with the re-occurrence of stress induced cardiomyopathy. If a person loses more than one loved one and is heart broken each time, what is going to happen to their health? Will their heart be able to make a full recovery each time?

Believe it or not, I got my first nose bleed this weekend when I was home. 18 years old and I didn’t know what to do when blood started dripping from my nose. My mother and I got into an argument while trying to resolve the issue when we couldn’t agree on which way to tilt my head. My natural instinct was to tilt my head forward so that the blood didn’t get on me, but she wanted me to pinch my nose and tilt my head back. So which is it? Forward or backward?

I, first, want to look at how and why we get nose bleeds because it often times makes me wonder why our noses can just start to bleed. Well, it turns out that there are two types of
nosebleeds, anterior (front of nose) and posterior (back of nose). According to WebMd, anterior nose bleeds are more common and less dangerous. The blood in anterior bleeds comes from blood vessels which are easier to stop the bleeding versus the bleeding from an artery in the back of the nose, which comes with posterior nose bleeds. Posterior nosebleeds are not common but happen the most in elderly people and require medical help to stop the bleeding.

So what causes the nose bleeds?

Nose bleeds are caused by numerous variables. According to this cite, nosebleeds can be caused by nose trauma, exposure to dry air, nasal and sinus infections, vigorous nose blowing, nasal surgery, and even cocaine use. Nose trauma would be any outside force colliding with the nose. For example, sports injuries, accidental bumps, piercings, and even picking your nose. Vigorous nose blowing goes hand in hand with having a sinus infection and dry air. If your nose is dry or you are constantly blowing your nose, it is more likely for you to get a bloody nose that way because you can pop blood vessels by constantly and viciously blowing your nose.

Now that we know the science behind nose bleeds, we can look into which way you are supposed to tilt your head and why.

After looking at many sites, they all seemed to give me the same answer. According to Dr. Diane Heatley, you are supposed to tilt your head forward when you have a nose bleed. This is to prevent the blood from going down your throat and putting you at risk for choking. While your head is tilted forward she advises that you add pressure to the nose to induce normal blood clotting to occur. When it comes to adding ice into the equation she says “A cold cloth or small ice pack on the bridge of the nose will also slow blood flow by constricting blood vessels.”

So there you have it, you are supposed to tilt your head forward and not back.

Since I have come to Penn State, I have realized so many people are trying to beat the freshman fifteen. Most do it by either exercising regularly or dieting, which can include counting calories. I for one have never gone to the length of counting and limiting myself to a certain number of calories. To me, it is simply too much work for little results, especially if it means that I am starving because I limit myself to a certain amount of food. When noticing these habits, I got to thinking What is a calorie? Why are they such a big deal?

Basically, a calorie is a unit of energy but, when you break it down, there are two types of calories.According to Medical News Today, “a small calorie is the amount of energy required to raise one gram of water by one degree Celsius. A large calorie is the amount of energy required to raise one kilogram of water by one degree Celsius.” One large calorie is composed of 1000 small calories. When it comes to food, you are consuming large calories. So really when you eat something with 20 calories you are actually consuming 20,000 calories.

It is obvious that our bodies need energy to survive, so calories are crucial to life. Too much or too little of calories though can be detrimental to your body, so it is important to consume just enough. At CalorieKing you can calculate how many calories you should be consuming based on your height, wieght, age, and gender. It will also ask about how physically active you are because if you burn more than a normal person you will also need to consume more. At Keep and Share, you can find out how many calories are in different types of food.

So what happens when a person consumes more calories than they burn?

If you find yourself consuming more than you are using, three things may possibly occur. The first, and probably the most recognized, is weight gain. According to Jill Lee, when you consume more than you use, the left overs get stored as fat for later use. She also explains that the extras are put into the “fat cells that grow and expand, causing you to gain weight and get bigger” It now makes a little sense as to why people count calories when dieting. Lee also goes on to talk about heart problems and diabetes. If your extra calories are high in fat your arteries will clog with a sticky plaque, which causes your heart to have to work harder. The same goes with eating foods high in sugar. Your pancreas has to work harder to convert the sugars into energy, which after gaining a resistance to insulin, can lead to Type-2 diabetes.

So what happens if you don’t consume enough calories?

This is where dieting gone wrong comes in. Not consuming enough calories may aid in weight loss but not the right weight loss. If you don’t get enough of the right calories you will start losing you lean weight, which is in you muscle, bone, and organs. These things begin to break down in order to keep the body function. To avoid losing the wrong weight, consume the recommended amount of calories and work out. Working out will build muscle, which in turn raises your metabolism, which allows you to consume more food.

As long as you are not eating poor quality food and maintaining a healthy balance of food and exercise, you should be good. If you want to take the extra precautions for your health, you might want to consider looking at your calories.

Being born and raised on a farm here in Pennsylvania, I have grown accustom to many different species of animals. I am accepting to most until they inflict fear upon me. Of all, I am most fearful of snakes. They are very sneaky and are likely to appear most places where I am, i.e the river, the woods, my back yard, etc. My main concern with these animals is that they are evolving and becoming more dangerous. Recently, I have heard that rattlesnakes are evolving to no longer rattle to warn predators (me) that they are present.

First, I want to look at how and why rattlesnakes rattle. Rattling is a result of fear in the snake alone. When frightened by something larger than its own, the tale of the snake will stand vertically and shake back and forth, creating a rattling noise. This is to warn a predator that its venomous self is present. According to this site, the rattle consists of segments made of keratin (what our fingernails are made of) and an individual snake will gain a segment after every time it shed its skin. These segments are hollow and make the noise when muscles in the tail contract making the segments knock together.

Now, why would an animal cease to warn predators of their existence?

Well it turns out that certain species of rattle snakes are becoming endangered. The Eastern Diamondback Rattlesnake is one in particular that is nearing extinction. Legally, laws have been set to prohibit the killing of these animals but it seems to be that they are taking protection themselves as well. Two news sources have covered stories about rattle snakes becoming silent and no longer giving warnings. Sarah Story, from ABC News, talked to experts about their thoughts on the silencing of rattles. Herpetologist, Daryl Sprout says, “It is very true that in nature that natural selection is already beginning to prefer snakes that do not bring attention to themselves and therefore draw incoming fire from humans” Meanwhile, zoo keeper Mike Clanton believes that this is the snake’s way of evolving. Together these statements go hand in hand and explain a lot. Now we have an idea as to why they are no longer rattling, it is because they are surviving longer without it, which is what an expert from another article has to say. Steve Reaves says, “The theory is we’ve created a snake through killing the ones that do rattle, we’ve created a rattlesnake that doesn’t tend to rattle so much,” It is shocking to think that we have created a new species that inflicts even more fear on humans.

This leads me to wonder if there will be more or less rattle snake encounters. Will there be less because we can no longer see them to fear them? Or will there more because we can no longer see them and we walk into their territory? How will they evolve next?

Just recently, I ran into a problem that a lot of college students run into. I ripped my last set of contacts and did not have a back up pair. I had to resort to wearing glasses that were a prescription behind in order to go to my classes and even then, I still couldn’t see. It was very frustrating trying to contact numerous stores that sell contacts to find my exact brand. After checking all of the stores in State College and in my home town, I was out of luck. No one had exactly what I needed. The whole time, I was thinking “Why can’t ever
yone wear the same brand? Isn’t there an emergency brand?” After going on 1800-Contacts and expediting my contacts, I could finally see again, but why was it such a hassle?

To be honest, I have been wearing contacts since the 6th grade and I have no idea how they worked so that was the first thing that I looked into. According to Stephanie Watson, contacts cling to and sit on a fluid that covers the outside of the human eye and they stay on with the help of eyelid pressure. To keep it simple, while on the eye itself, the contacts redirect light that is not directly hitting the retina as it should. The shape of the contact lense depend on if you are nearsighted (Myopia) or farsighted (Hyperopia).

Knowing the information above, lead into the discovery of all that goes into choosing the right contact. There are numerous options when choosing all of which are talked about here. First, you have to decide if you want a hard or a soft contact. Hard are often more durable, but are more likely to irritate the eye and cause discomfort while soft contacts are soothing and comfortable but are more likely to become damaged over a certain amount of time. The next decision is based on the length you want to wear them. If taking care of contacts properly is frightening or a struggle, extended period contacts are recommended. These contacts decrease dry eye irritation versus the contacts that are changed daily. Daily changes ensure that the contacts you are putting into your eyes are clean and not damage, but it takes a little more commitment to taking care of them when compared to extended period contacts.

When an optometrist is performing an eye exam a lot of thought goes into which brand to use, other than the obvious – what fits best. The doctor must look at the base curve, diameter, power, and surface treatments. The base curve is the curvature your cornea has over the pupil, the less space between the two surfaces, the better. The diameter comes into play when trying to center to lens and find the right comfort. The power of the contacts is, in my opinion, the next most obvious difference between brands. Power is the amount of correction a person needs in order to be able to see clearly. Some brands offer high and clearer powers than others for those with really strong myopia or hyperopia. Lastly, the doctor must look at the surface treatment of the lenses or how the lens reacts with your eye. If a person has naturally dry eyes, it is going to be more likely that they will be prescribed contacts that have and retain more moisture for longer, and vice versa.

To me all of this makes sense, but what I still don’t understand is whether there is a contact brand that serves as the “emergency” brand and can save those in similar situations that I was in no too long ago. It puzzles me that medical prescriptions have substitutions but contact prescriptions do not. Upon my research and looking for my saving grace in contacts, I found nothing in regards to substituting contacts. If two brands are similar why can’t a person just buy one set to get them through until their new contacts come.

One of my friends here at Penn State swears to me up and down that sleeping without a pillow betters a persons posture. At first, I was skeptical of this thought because to me it just didn’t make sense. I am 18 years old and I have always slept with a pillow, how could it be bad for me?

It turns out she is right to a certain degree. Sleeping without a pillow can better your posture and ease your neck of pain. This is the case if you regularly sleep on your back. When you sleep without pillows, you are able to move around more and not have to fight against pillows. Resting your neck on a pillow when you sleep on your back encourages you to curl forward and it teaches your back to slouch and curve. According to Sleep Mentor, the constant curvature of the spine when sleeping with the pillow, can cause misalignment of the spine and can become permanent.

Using a pillow when you sleep on your side or stomach is crucial. The pillow supports your your neck and keeps you from straining the muscles in your neck. Sleeping with pillows also helps a person to fall asleep faster because they are comforted by the cushioning.

To me, I believe that it is 100% preference if you decide to sleep with or without a pillow. There is science behind the positives and negatives to using pillows and to not using pillows, it is a matter of what suites an individual best. Because I am a side sleeper, I will continue to sleep with my pillows.

Making permanent changes to our bodies are becoming the new trend. From piercing to tattoos, permanent choices are being made. Beyond the obvious, our tendency to like these body alterations, we are putting ourselves at risk for diseases and infections. The medical risks we take are what I want to look at.

All piercings run the risk of getting infected at some point, but the way they are cared for determines if it will happen. Common complications include bacterial infections, blood loss, scaring and swelling. If a piercing has a bacterial infection, puss will form around and under the skin near the hole. If the liquid does not come out on its own or when cleaned by the person, it might have to be drained by a doctor. Blood loss is most common when it comes to tongue piercings. There is a vein right under the tongue, that if punctured, could lead to major blood loss and extending medical and healing complications.

When adding any piercing to the body, a person runs the risk of having scar tissue. This can result from a failed or infected piercing. When choosing a piercing and how one wants to go about getting it, looking at the procedure is crucial. One might not think that the way its performed can effect the results, but it does. The piercing pagodas and stands in numerous stores such as WalMart and Claire’s may be convenient and quick but they do their fair share of damage. They use piercing guns which can sometimes shatter the cartilage in your ear, this is why some people get hard lumps on the backs of their piercings. Because the cartilage on the middle and upper ear is thick, it can only undergo a certain amount of pressure until it breaks into a ton of little pieces.

Swelling is common on most piercing when they are new. This is because your body is not used to a foreign object and material being in place. The cells where the jewelry is now have to move around and shrink to adjust to the piercing. If swelling does not go down soon after the piercing, it may be because the body is fighting an infection and it needs medical attention. It could also be that the jewelry is of poor quality and needs to be changed to a higher quality. There are many causes to swelling, but most can be fixed.

Piercings may look eye appealing but clearly some may cause pain and discomfort. I encourage those who get piercing to keep them clean and to monitor them. Infections and diseases are possible and no one is 100% safe from them! Just take care of them and you shouldn’t have any trouble.

Here is what a bacterial infection of a belly button piercing looks like.

Has it ever crossed your mind that animals with four legs can walk on all fours hours after they are born and humans take roughly 12 months? As a farmer and an aunt of two beautiful little girls, I, myself, have wondered this exact thing.

The simple answer to this question is that our brains are so large that they are immature when we are born. Therefore, it takes longer for our brains to develop than it does four legged animals. If our brains were to be as developed as those animals who are able to walk after birth, the baby would get stuck in the birth canal due to its head being too large.

In order to tell how developed a human brain weighs depends on the weight of the brain itself. It was this variable that helped scientists realize that animals and humans begin to walk at roughly the same time in their brain development. Walking is controlled through the cerebellum which is toward the back of the brain and hangs lower than the rest of the parts. A baby can not walk until the cerebellum begins to develop farther after the childs birth. The baby is also trying to gain the balance, coordination, and muscle strength that it takes to walk.

It is interesting to see how humans have evolved from different animals and the reasons as to why we are different. Because our brains are that much more complex than those of animals, we require more care when we are infants. Which explains why animals can walk within hours after birth and humans take nearly a year to do the same.

As I began to paint my nails one night I got to thinking about an article I read on Facebook a while back. The article was about a brand of nail polish that has been designed to enable girls, especially college students, to detect if they are being drugged through their drink at a party. In order to detect a drug, one must swirl their finger, that has the nail polish on it, throughout the drink. If there is a drug present, the nail polish color will change, alerting the person that the drink is not safe to consume.

The nail polish called “Undercover Colors” was created by four male undergraduate students from North Carolina State University. Ankesh Madan, Stephen Grey, Tasso Von Windheim and Tyler Confrey-Maloney have created this product because they personally knew someone who was sexually assaulted. Their product is made to change color when there is a chemical reaction with the following drugs: Rohypnol, Xanax, and GHB.

The men have set up a facebook page to gain followers in their pursuit to launch the new products. There, they make announcements pertaining to the progress they have made and what the next steps are. Those who are willing are also encouraged to donate money to the research required to get the product approved. Donations can be made at www.undercovercolors.com. The money has been used to get the product to investment levels, while gaining on their goal to launch the product.

I believe that this product has amazing potential and I support it completely. I think it is amazing that they worked with chemists in their college to research and produce this product. It is astonishing that they have come up with something so simple like nail polish yet intricate that it can detect three different drugs.

Not only are these men creating an amazing product but they also volunteer at a sexual assault and domestic violence center, Interact. This product has the potential to reach and effect many. Undercover Colors will help college students avoid getting slipped drugs and forgetting the rest of the night. With such a simple coat of nail polish, one can be saved from such life changing experiences.

Hi, my name is Jenna Snyder. I am a freshmen here at Penn State majoring in Telecommunications. This is my second semester on campus and I love it here!

I took this class because I have never like science subjects. I do not like that there is no definite answer to questions and that there are so many variable that play into experiments. I am not majoring in anything science because of this. I like working with other people and networking. I want go into telecommunications because it is my way of joining together my ability to communicate with my passion for media. In high school I was one of two sports broadcasters and I loved all the responsibilities that came with it.

In high school I was big into sports. I have played countless sports but my all-time favorite is volleyball. I enjoy watching football and baseball as well. I am so excited for this season to start because WE ARE.

Below is a picture of me getting a block for my high school volleyball team. (I am on the left)

The link will take you to my high school website where you can see one of my sports broadcasts.

http://www.mcsdk12.org/mchs/engine/swf/player.swf?url=http://www.mcsdk12.org/data/media/05-22-15.flv&volume=100