There have been time where I find myself listening to sad music and I’ll suddenly become a little happier or I’ll feel relieved. I don’t know about guys, but I know me and my girls back home would always just listen to sad music randomly. We wouldn’t listen to it necessarily because we were sad, it would just help us release some emotions we hd bottled up without having to take it out in a different way.There are many different reasons as to why people listen to sad music but I want to know why people enjoy it so much if it’s sad.

Researchers did a study to see what emotions the sad music evoked from people. What they found was that sad music had two different results in regards to the emotions it evoked: romantic emotions and unhappy emotions. These are contradictory emotions and it’s very weird to see that one piece of music can evoke such different emotions form one person.

There really isn’t evidence as to why people enjoy listening to sad music so much. I think it’s mainly the release it let’s us experience. When I listen to a sad song and I cry, I feel as if a weight has been lifted off my shoulder and not in the I-got-mad-so-I-took-it-out-on-her kind of way just in the “wow that was relieving” way. Interpreting sad lyrics and learning them and usually being able to relate to the lyrics is also very soothing and relaxing. Sometime it feels nice to know that a song can relate to you so well and you don’t feel as alone. I do believe there is no real scientific explanation behind this (it’s mainly psychological reasonings) or it just hasn’t been found. I will be keeping up on articles and information on this topic because it does interest me as to why people feel good listening to sad songs.

Reference Sites:

https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/valley-girl-brain/201510/why-we-cant-stop-listening-sad-songs

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/07/130711135459.htm

Growing up with blue eyes I always felt as if every time I walked outside into the sun I would have to put on my sunglasses.I always found myself squinting or having to put my hands over my eyes if I didn’t have sunglasses that day. I heard lots of people tell me constantly that it was because I have blue eyes and since they’re a lighter color they are more sensitive to light as oppose to someone that has brown eyes. After hearing those things, they kind of just stuck in my head and now I just believe it. I never felt the need to research this theory until this blog assignment came up.

The answer to my question is, apparently, yes. Lighter colored eyes are indeed more sensitive to bright lights. Dr. Horne, an ophthalmologist explains why photophobia is and how it affects these specific eye colors. Photophobia is basically light sensitivity in the eyes and it affects this with lighter colored eyes because the amount of pigmentation is a lot less than those people with darker colored eyes, therefore it is harder to block out the stress harsh lights put on the eye. The melanin around caucasian babies is usually nonexistent which is why they are almost always born with lighter colored eyes. Since there is no melanin, there is no protection from the sun whatsoever. It is recommended to those with lighter eyes to stay out of the sun for long periods of time and to try and wear protective eyewear because the constant bright lights and squinting can cause damage to eyesight and major headaches (from personal experience).

If you have light eyes, just remember that every time you walk out you are putting yourself at more of a risk to damage your eyesight if you do not wear the protective eyewear or stay out in the sunlight too long. Buy some shades!!!!

Reference Sites:

https://www.dukehealth.org/blog/myth-or-fact-people-light-eyes-are-more-sensitive-sunlight

https://essilorusa.com/content/essilor-usa/en/newsroom/news/sensitive_to_light.html

This topic actually applies to me right now… with all the cramming and parties that college students are a part of during the week and weekend it’s hard to get enough sleep, or so we think. Last night I went to sleep at around 4:30 in the morning cramming for an exam and I woke up way earlier than I usually do for work and had amazing energy throughout the day. This confuses me so much. Parents and teachers are always throwing the whole “get a good night’s sleep” in which they mean 8 or more hours of sleep. We’ve been told this since before we can remember, and yes getting 8 hours or more of sleep is extremely important, but most of the time it’s almost impossible for students and even adults with work, families, etc. I’ve heard from a lot of friends throughout high school and especially now that when someone gets less sleep than usual they are usually more alert the next day. Why is this?

It is shown that the less sleep you get the more active some parts of your brain become, while others become more inactive. When you sleep longer than you should or less than you should, you disturb your sleeping patterns, or circadian rhythm. This causes you to either wake up during a REM(deep sleep) cycle and feel even more tired or to wake up before you even hit the deep sleep cycle and be more alert. However, I’m not saying people shouldn’t sleep…especially students. Sleep actually enhances a person’s memory and learning ability. The more you sleep the better your brain can perform and the more information you can retain. When you’re fully awake is the best time to encounter new information and begin to memorize it, when you’re sleeping is when you actually retain the memory and it sticks in your brain. Sleep is still very important and necessary in everyone’s life. Would you pull all-nighters if you knew you’d be less tired in the morning?

Reference Sites:

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/sleep-deprivation-amps-up-brain/

http://healthysleep.med.harvard.edu/healthy/matters/benefits-of-sleep/learning-memory

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-michael-j-breus/how-come-i-feel-more-tire_b_428928.html

“Sopa de pollo” also known as chicken soup in English was always a big thing when I was sick back home in Miami. Growing up hispanic from both my mom and my dad’s side I learned that chicken soup was almost always the answer to getting rid of a cold or really any illness. The second my grandparents found out I was coming down with something they’d rush into the kitchen and make some chicken soup. I always felt like it was just a myth and nothing really came out of it, but I do sometimes sweat off my fever or feel a little better after…it may just be in my head, who knows.

So, looking at this article I’m seeing that there isn’t any hardcore evidence showing that it does help…just some saying that it COULD be a factor in reducing the common cold. I really do think it’s psychological and since it is home-made and also a comfort food, people probably just let it get to their head. However, since there really isn’t an actual cure for the common cold and a lot of children’s cold and flu medicine is being tested for its safety, people really just have to rely on the chicken soup and hope for the best.

It is shown, though, that the chicken soup is filled with neutrophils which help to fight infections in the body. There was actually a study done on this in Miami because scientists believed that the chicken soup just had a placebo effect on people (which is what I believe). The scientists got together and did an experiment. They gathered 15 people and gave each either hot water, chicken soup, or cold water. They found that the chicken soup did better with helping the cold go away. The hot water did help but was not as effective as the soup. Also found in chicken soup is nutrients that help to protect cilia in your nose which help keep out infections from the nose. The results from this experiment were never really certain but it can be assumed that it does have some sort of effect on people with a cold. So, next time you feel a cold coming on just ask abuela(grandma) to whip you up a nice bowl of hot chicken soup.

Reference Sites :

http://blog.foodnetwork.com/healthyeats/2011/11/29/nutrition-myths-debunked-does-chicken-soup-cure-a-cold/

Have you ever walked by someone that smelled so good that you just HAD to stop and ask yourself if it’s even possible to smell that good? Have you ever been weirdly attracted to someone just because of their scent? Um, I know I have. Now, I’m not just talking cologne or perfume smells here; I’m talking about people’s natural scent, with or without all the extra scents. Even the guys that weren’t the most attractive suddenly became 10x more good looking because of how they smelled.  That always made me think…why is it that I’m so attracted to smells? Why does a smell change the way I see a person?

According to the article linked, pheromones are the answer to my questions. The pheromones people release through their glands are really what link smell to attraction. When you walk by someone and their scent hits your nose… a chemical reaction occurs that sends signals to the brain that can either attract or remind you of something. There have been various studies that show that smell can lead to sexual desire and especially sexual attraction. From three glands we possess in our bodies: sebaceous, sweat, and apocrine glands…the one most linked to attraction is the apocrine gland. Apocrine glands are known to release some steroids, such as Androsterone, that give off odor which is what results in the sexual behaviors/attractions. I’ve heard also that men are most attracted to women when they are menstruating. This is actually really weird and hard to believe which is why I HAD to look it up. It’s true. There have been studies that show that this is true. Men can smell whether a woman is menstruating or not (subconsciously, of course) and it is seen that when the men smelled the scent  of the woman on her period,  they were more sexually attracted.

I really found this all so interesting, considering girls would never think that during their “time of the month” they were found to be more attractive to guys. Also very interesting to know that when you’re around someone that smells a certain way you can easily be sexually attracted to them regardless of their physical attractiveness and you don’t even realize it.

Reference Sites:

https://www.psychologytoday.com/articles/199603/the-smell-love

http://www.smart-publications.com/articles/human-pheromones-the-science-behind-the-scent-of-attraction

http://beheco.oxfordjournals.org/content/15/4/579.full

Hey science peeps, I’m Angelica Arguello…but everyone just calls me Angie. You’re probably wondering what EPP is and it’s my major: Education and Public Policy! “What’s that? What can you do with that? Like a teacher?” All valid questions I’ve gotten but NO. At first I did want to be a teacher but then I realized that they are so underpaid for the amazing (some not-so amazing) jobs they do. So, I went for the next best thing…I’d like to either be a principal of a school or a Education Policy Analyst, which is basically someone that goes over all the policies that are set in schools and fixes them. And we all know that the education systems need some fixing in middle and high schools! So, once I saw that the analysts can make up to $100,000 AND i realized that I was actually interested in doing that I was like : 

Yeah, I guess you guys can kind of see why I don’t like science. I’ve always been interested in helping kids in the education aspect of things. Science, even throughout middle and high school has never interested me at all, BUT I did choose this course because I heard that we literally spoke about everything someone can think of and that there’s a lot of thinking which I do like! Also, I heard Andrew had an accent (not gonna lie I thought it was Australian) and I’m obsessed with accents!

Here’s a link that further explains what EPP can do for students majoring in it: Live Link