Science, Art, Litt, Science based Art & Science Communication

Qs on science and my replies to them - Part 105

Q Does hospital environment effect your BP?

Krishna It does. Some peoples' nerves get jumpy in a hospital atmosphere.

Other factors that can effect your BP...

Blood Pressure Cuff is too Small^1,3,4 - It is extremely important to make sure the proper size blood pressure cuff is used on your upper arm when taking a measurement. In fact, most blood pressure measurement errors occur by not taking the time to determine if the patient's arm circumference falls within the Range indicators on the cuff. Studies have shown that using too small of a blood pressure cuff can cause a patient's systolic blood pressure measurement to increase 10 to 40 mmHg.
Blood Pressure Cuff Used Over Clothing^1,3,4- When having your blood pressure measured, the cuff should always be placed directly on your arm. Studies have shown that clothing can impact a systolic blood pressure from 10 to 50 mmHg.
Not Resting 3-5 minutes^3,4- To obtain an accurate blood pressure measurement, it is important that you relax and rest quietly in a comfortable chair for 3 to 5 minutes before a reading is taken. Any activities such as exercise or eating can affect your systolic blood pressure measurement 10 to 20 mmHg.
Arm/Back/Feet Unsupported^1,3,4 - When having your blood pressure measured, you should always be seated in a comfortable chair, legs uncrossed, with your back and arm supported. If your back is not supported, your diastolic blood pressure measurement may be increased by 6 mmHg. Crossing your legs has shown to raise your systolic blood pressure by 2 to 8 mmHg. The positioning of your upper arm below your heart level will also result in higher measurements, whereas positioning your upper arm above your heart level will give you lower measurements. These differences can increase/decrease your systolic blood pressure 2mmHg for every inch above/below your heart level.
Emotional State^5,6- Stress or anxiety can cause large increases in blood pressure. If you are having your blood pressure taken while thinking about something that causes you to tense up or become stressed, your blood pressure levels could significantly increase.
Talking^1,2,3,4 - If you are talking to the nurse/doctor while having your blood pressure taken, studies have shown that your systolic blood pressure measurement may increase 10 to 15mmHg.
Smoking^1,5,6- Tobacco products (cigarettes, cigars, smokeless tobacco) all contain nicotine which will temporarily increase your blood pressure, so refrain from smoking at least 30 minutes before having a blood pressure measurement taken.
Alcohol/Caffeine^4,5,6 - Alcohol and caffeine (sodas, coffee, tea, etc) consumption causes blood pressure levels to spike so stay away from alcohol/caffeine at least 30 minutes before having a blood pressure measurement taken.
Temperature^4,5 - Blood pressure tends to increase when you are cold. Therefore, if you are at the doctor's office and the room temperature is "chilly" to you, be aware that your blood pressure readings may be higher than expected.
Full bladder^1,3,4 - Your blood pressure is lower when your bladder is empty. As your bladder gradually fills, your blood pressure increases. Studies have shown that your systolic blood pressure measurements could increase 10 to 15mmHg when you have a full bladder.

Q: As a specialist what are some mistakes you have noticed hospital staff making with their care?

Krishna: I am not a medical professional but a microbiologist. Naturally whenever I took my parents to hospitals I keenly observed how people maintained the hygiene there.

I have noticed doctors removing their shoes before entering their rooms and theaters and wearing slippers placed on the same steps of the same shoe racks !

I have observed the dentists, after putting their equipment in their patients’ mouths putting them on the same trays again and again on which new ones to check other patients are kept! I have also seen them using the same pipe over and over again putting it inside the mouths of their patients without cleaning it to pump a stream of water during scaling.

Using the same beds and pillows over and over again to check patients without changing the covers.

They just clean the floor and think that is sufficient.

No wonder Hospital-acquired infection is reaching alarming proportions.

Q: What should we do if we are being haunted by a demon?

Krishna: There are no demons. But people can hallucinate strange things.

If you think you are being haunted by one, you have to immediately go to a mental clinic to get controlled or cured.

Q: What is the best logical explanation (scientific) about ghosts captured on photographs?
Krishna :
1.Photoshopping
2. Damaged films that showed patterns. In the pre-digital days when all sorts of nasty things could happen to a film, strange things appeared on the film. And these could be strange ghost like images.
3. Pareidolia. Psychological phenomenon called Pareidolia, makes you see more even when something is not really there.
This is the brain's response to seeing faces and other significant objects in random stimulus. Pareidolia can cause people to interpret random images, or patterns of light and shadow, as faces, ghosts and what not.

Q: Why are so many unwilling to accept fact, but accept impossible as real, speically when teh subject is religion?

Krishna:

There are so many things that come under this heading ‘impossibilities’. Like astrology, alternative medicines, black magic, pseudo-science, superstitions. We are fighting these things because people are suffering because of them.

When you mention facts, research has proved that people don’t accept them immediately. The cultural, emotional, religious and ideological conditioning of minds screw up things in their mind and thought process and they cannot see things clearly. “Confirmation bias” is one thing that people are used to and they agree with only what they ‘think is correct’ and not what data and facts actually say.

People treat facts as opinions. I have faced this problem several times here too. They fail to differentiate between facts and opinions. When genuine people of science say something , they mention only the former and not the latter.

People want emotional support and therefore try to stick with their groups and their ideologies. People who want to exploit others make use of these things to control people.

Why are these biases so important? Evolution is responsible for it! Our brain’s primary focus is making sure we survive, not identifying truth.

That draw back came from earlier times of our evolutionary process. However, modern times don’t really need this as we are not living in jungles or in the lap of raw nature any more. Science and tech has provided protection from natural elements, calamities, predators etc. But still we strangely continue with our biases.

The tendency to attribute meaning to perceived connections or patterns between seemingly unrelated things. Our minds are very good in finding links, even when they are not there, like superstitious connections, astrology- linking planets and stars to our birth dates. This is our alarm-system in overdrive.

Thinking that your opinions and beliefs are absolute truth and alternative thoughts are false (naive reality). ‘Belief is a must’ is what they ‘re told, to control them. But believing something before thoroughly analysing it, is a faulty cognitive process. They never tell you that, do they?

Fear factor when you lose control of your life because of weakness in your cognitive process makes you look for temporary remedies people suggest.

Our education system doesn’t teach critical thinking and scientific thinkingproperly.

That is reforming only half!

Scientific methods provide ways for correcting these malfunctions in the thought process. If people are not ready to go that way, we face chimeras of modern worldlike we are seeing daily. Scientifically and technologically advanced societies with ancient mindsets! LIKE A scorpion going mad and biting its own body.

Enjoy this scene: A house-warming ceremony - The house ‘s very posh, built with high tech materials, with all the modern gadgets and facilities. We admired it a lot.

After the initial rituals ‘re over, they brought a (holy) cow, made it urinate and defecate inside the rooms contaminating with microbes and toxins and then they made all the guests sit on the same dirtied floor and eat.

Eeek!

I ran away without looking back!

Q: Can dogs really sense a paranormal activity?

Q: Can some animals (like cats and dogs) sense paranormal activity ( like spirits)

Krishna: Hmmm! According to science ghosts don’t exist in the first place.

If you interpret dogs' behaviour or their barking in your own peculiar way ( yes, dogs have better odour senses than human beings, their senses are keener, and different, than ours), and imagine and explain things in any way you want like some people do without any scientific backing, that becomes pseudo-science.

Evidence of dogs' extrasensory perception is elusive and anecdotal. According to experts, dogs' varying reactions to a shift in the atmosphere or unrecognized sound or movement can stem from early traumas, such as being caught in a rainstorm, hurricane or tornado, or from "a cellular memory” that they have brought with them to this present scene.

Scientific studies on dogs' senses offer debatable evidence of dogs' psychic and sensory perceptions. Dogs might react to unusual smells ( that you can’t perceive with your senses), sounds but don’t try to interpret this behaviour as sensing paranormal activity that doesn’t exist. They are just responding to some strange smells, that’s all!

Science and the paranormal

Q:Why do some people see ghosts or supernatural things happen, but others have never experienced anything close?

Krishna: Human behaviour depends on strange perceptions about the world around.

If you are not a critical thinker and can’t investigate things to find facts, every story people around tell you influences your imagination.

There is an interesting story.

It seems two people stood in front of a cave. Both started imagining what would be inside. The first one thinks about demons, devils, skeletons and all the evil things inhabiting the insides and harm he would face when he goes inside and just stares at it with fear.

But the other one thinks about beautiful water ways, wonderful lime stone formations, the lively unexplored life inside and dares to enter it. Need I say who this hero is? And he brought us back a wealth of knowledge from the cave and want us to enter it too.

If you can interpret what you see in terms of grandmother tales, you see ghosts in the dark when you see shadows. Under certain conditions, your brain can hallucinate too.

Scientific thinkers interpret things in different ways because of their knowledge about the physical world. That is why they don’t imagine things.

There are no real ghosts according to science.

Science and the paranormal

Q: How can we stop the effect of paranormal on humans?

Krishna: Develop a scientific outlook. Paranormal activity is just your perception about certain things happening around you, not reality.

Science and the paranormal

Q: Is race a pseudo-scientific belief?

Krishna: Scientists think races and castes are social constructs without biological meaning. Racial categories are weak proxies for genetic diversity and need to be phased out.

Yes, some researchers use 'racial concept' in genetic research but now scientists think it is too crude to provide useful information, it's a concept that has social meaning that interferes in the scientific understanding of human genetic diversity and it's a concept that they call upon moving away from.

The study of complete genomes from different parts of the world has shown that even between Africa and Europe, for example, there is not a single absolute genetic difference, meaning no single variant where all Africans have one variant and all Europeans another one, even when recent migration is disregarded.

The researchers think that there are a few areas where race as a construct might still be useful in scientific research: as a political and social, but not biological, variable.

Q: Has paranormal activities been tested scientifically?

Krishna: Read here how

Scientists put psychic's paranormal claims to the test

and won!

Q: What are the beliefs and practices of constellations and astrology scientific basis?

Krishna: There is no science behind astrology. Only pseudo-science people invented to authenticate what they believe in or practice to earn money.

Here is my evidence…

Why Astrology is Pseudo-science

Q: Do pet animals realize if their owner is pregnant?
Krishna : People tell strange stories, don't they?
What people say is anecdotal and just their interpretations of the situation, not reality.
Yes, dogs can sense hormonal (chemical) changes that occur in a pregnant lady because of altered scent. But they really don’t know the science behind pregnancy. Therefore, they cannot realize their owner is pregnant. Sensing the change in odour is not sensing pregnancy. Get that right first.
If pregnancy related hormonal changes has you riding the emotional roller coaster, your dog is probably noticing it too. But It really cannot phantom the reason for it. It might change its response to your behaviour.
Any positive behavioural changes you say happen is just your wishful thinking, strange perception and attributing your thoughts to dogs and other pets! That’s all!

Q: What are other examples of a superstition that has a scientific explanation?

Krishna : There are no examples of a superstition that has a scientific explanation. What people give as examples are based on pseudo-science and not genuine science.

I have answered similar Qs several times before here. Science and superstitions work in opposite ways. Science never endorses superstitions. What people say in this regard just denotes their attempt to authenticate their irrational beliefs with the help of science.

People who don’t know the difference between science and pseudo-science think all that is true. Come out of this pseudo-world.

Q: How are scientific knowledge and religion similar?
Krishna : They are not similar. And knowledge obtained in these fields too is in opposite ways.

Religion is primitive way of explaining things about our world and existence without any evidence. It is a creative imagination and therefore can differ from person to person, place to place and time to time.

Science is a systematic understanding of things and the facts obtained through science is evidence based. Therefore, it remains constant throughout the universe.

Q: How do I comprehend science and religion altogether as a single entity?

Krishna: You can’t do that! Because they work in completely opposite ways.

Religion is primitive way of explaining things about our world and existence without any evidence. It is a creative imagination and therefore can differ from person to person, place to place and time to time.

Science is a systematic understanding of things and the facts obtained through science is evidence based. Therefore, it remains constant throughout the universe.

Q: How does it feel to be possessed by a ghost/demon?
Krishna : It feels like a mental disorder that needs a specialist doctor’s attention.

There is no evidence of ghosts according to science. So if somebody says something on this, it just is their strange perception and interpretation of normal physical things happening around.

Q: Why are there so many people who believe in the new age nonsense? I am sending a link to a video that supports this view.

https://youtu.be/ajO5MvL9pVE

Krishna: We, the people of scientific community, well some of us, call them,

‘’ strange beings wrapped in high fashion to conceal their ancient mindsets’’.

New age sense is genuine science.

New age nonsense is pseudo-science propagated by people to authenticate their atavistic thinking, emotions and beliefs.

And we have people who don’t know the difference between the two and don’t even try to learn things.

Here is my evidence: Do pet animals realize if their owner is pregnant?

Visit the page to which the link has been given and read the answers.

Emotional strange perceptions, and interpretations of illusions get most views and up votes and scientific explanations get the least, even though they are the correct ones.

Then why would people come into the light when darkness is bringing them more fame and appreciation, even if it is a fleeting one?

They give importance to emotions and other low lying things rather than a higher state of mind like intellectualism derived from critical thinking. That is why they can’t come out of the rut they are embedded in.

You can sympathise with a child who is afraid of darkness but can’t forgive an adult who is afraid of light.

It is their life, people have every right to live it in the way they want, even if it is living in semi-darkness or darkness.

Even if you tell them to come into the permanent light along with you, they won’t listen most of the time.

We try to bring a change. Those who want to come into the light will come with us, others who want to stick with their groups for emotional support, prefer their illusionary world.

As long as suckers exist, exploiters will exploit.

We just shrudge and move on.

Q: Do human brains compromise our access to all of our spiritual knowledge that we gained from prior lives?
Krishna : There is no evidence of prior lives, according to science. It just is your belief.
Soul?! What is it according to science and scientists?

So when you talk of human brains, which are science based and science run, such a situation doesn’t exist.

Q: Why don't scientists consider evidence from religion?

Krishna: Religion is a personal issue. Anecdotal evidence has a very low value in science. It is based on people's perception of the world rather than facts.

For instance, you take your mentally ill child to a psychiatrist. Can the medically trained doctor consider 'demon-possessed' theory to treat the child like a witch doctor does when he has full knowledge to the contrary? No, he can't!

Therefore, scientists, who strictly follow scientific methods and methodology cannot accept strange perceptions of people as evidence.

Q: If skipping meals is bad, then why do experts say intermittent fasting is healthy?

Krishna: I never ever fasted in my life, not even for a single day. But never faced any health problems too.

You cannot generalize things related to health and nutrition. Each person differs from the others.

University of Twitter? Scientists give impromptu lecture critiquing...

Q: Why is science not revered and respected by society like religion?

Krishna: To revere and respect, first you have to understand it. To understand science, you need a higher level of cognitive analysis.

That is where people face a mind block. Your brain is wired to go the easy way, not the difficult route. Only a few people can accept the challenge science poses. Even some people of science can’t overcome this trial, leave alone people outside the labs.

Emotions rule the world. Fear rules people’s minds. When both hijack your mind, it becomes weak and you can’t think clearly and depend on emotional support that can be obtained easily. That is what exactly religious beliefs and groups provide, though a temporary and feeble one.

Science makes your mind more stronger, confident, courageous, and provides permanent solutions.

If you are suffering from a serious infection, you go and pray in a religious place if you believe in God. Will you get cured? Will you be saved? No!

You have to go to a doctor and take the help of medical science anyway to get cured.

A contagious disease is spreading across the world and killing people. If you perform pujas will it be contained? No!

You have to take the help of science and scientists to study and control it and eradicate it!

Why? Everything in this universe is science based and science run. Science yields only to science and nothing else.

Science's rules are unyielding, they will not be bent in any way fo...

But still, some peoples’ minds refuse to accept this fact because, they still stick to ancient thought process that is both easy and comfortable. And the longer time science takes to study, confirm and find fact based but permanent solutions makes people impatient and run for a temporary cover of religion.

Respect or no respect, acceptance or no acceptance living systems like yours and mine cannot live without science. This universe cannot exist without science. That is the reality based fact. Remove science, everything ceases to exist!

That is the significance of science.

Q: What are tornadoes?

Krishna: Tornadoes are rapidly spinning columns of air associated with severe thunderstorms. Typically, these tornadoes develop in areas of strong "wind shear," which is where the wind's direction and speed change rapidly moving upward in the atmosphere. Those areas of wind shear get ingested into thunderstorms, where they can facilitate rotation within a thunderstorm and eventually spawn columns of air to the ground, forming what we call tornadoes.

Q: Is there any proof that ghosts exist? Are they recorded on the camera by anyone?

Krishna : There is no evidence that ghosts exist. Science says no proof exists except for anecdotal episodes people tell when they imagine or hallucinate. Yes, some strange pictures appear now and then with ghosts captured in them. This is because of …

1.Photoshopping

2. Damaged films that showed patterns. In the pre-digital days when all sorts of nasty things could happen to a film, strange things appeared on the film. And these could be strange ghost like images.

3. Pareidolia. Psychological phenomenon called Pareidolia, makes you see more even when something is not really there.

This is the brain's response to seeing faces and other significant objects in random stimulus. Pareidolia can cause people to interpret random images, or patterns of light and shadow, as faces, ghosts and what not.

CITATIONS

Handler, Joel. The Importance of Accurate Blood Pressure Measurement. The Permanente Journal (2009) 13:3: 51-54
Long, JM., J.J. Lynch, N.M Machiran, SA Thomas, KL Manilow. The effect of status on blood pressure during verbal communication. Behavior Science (2004) 5:2: 165-172.
O'Brien E, R. Asmar, L Beilin, Y Imai, J. Mallion, G. Mancia, T. Mengden, M. Myers, P. Padfield, P. Palatini, G. Parati, T. Pickering, J. Redon, J. Staessen, G. Stergiou, P. Verdecchia. European Society of Hypertension recommendations for conventional, ambulatory, and home blood pressure measurements. Jounral of Hypertension (2003) 21: 821-848.
Pickering, T.G., J.E. Hall, L.J. Appel, B.E. Falkner, J. Graves, M.N. Hill, D.W. Jones, T. Kurtz, S.G Sheps, E. J. Roccella. Recommendations for Blood Pressure Measurement in Humans and Experimental Animals: Part 1: Blood Pressure Measurement in Humans: A Statement for Professionals From the Subcommittee of Professional and Public Education of the American Heart Association Council on High Blood Pressure Research. Hypertension (2005) 45:142-161.
http://www.faqs.org/nutrition/Hea-Irr/Hypertension.html
http://www.infobloodpressure.com/factors-affecting-BP-readings.html

Qs on science and my replies to them - Part 105

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