Chocolate and Brain

Did You Know?

The smell of chocolate increases theta brain waves, which triggers relaxation.

Eating a bar of chocolate may cheer you up, but sniffing it calms you down, says a British psychologist. Among several food smells tested, only chocolate had a significant calming effect on the brain—and only real chocolate at that.

Neil Martin, a psychologist at Middlesex University in Enfield, asked 60 volunteers to sit in a "low-odour room", wearing goggles and headphones to block out other stimuli, while he wafted smells their way. He used EEG (electroencephalography) to record their brain waves as they sniffed.

Half the volunteers were treated to the odours of real foods, while the others made do with synthetic smells. The real foods included chocolate and coffee, as well as the less aromatic baked beans and rotting pork. But apart from chocolate, the smells had little effect on the subjects' "theta" brain wave, which is associated with attentiveness. Only chocolate reduced attentiveness. It caused a dip from the "no smell" control reading of 2.6 microvolts in the brain wave down to around 1.8 microvolts, Martin told a meeting of the British Psychological Society in London.

Chocolate connoisseurs might not be surprised that the scent of synthetic chocolate did not have the same relaxing effect as the real thing. "They may have thought it was chocolate" says Martin, "but not chocolate as they knew it."

Comments

SOME FACTS ABOUT OXYGEN! SHORT ESSAY

Did You Know? Oxygen is the most common element in the Earth's crust. The rigid, top layer of the Earth is called the lithosphere. It consists of the Earth's crust and the top-most part of the mantle. Most geological activities that affect the Earth take place on the lithosphere. It is the most rigid of all of Earth's layers. The lithosphere consists of oceanic and continental lithospheres. Oceanic lithosphere consists of Oceanic crust which forms the floors of seas and oceans while continental lithosphere consists of continental crust made of land masses. The Earth's crust is important as it supports human and plant life and contains elements and such as aluminum which facilitate technological development. The most abundant elements in the Earth's crust are presented below: Oxygen - 46.6% Oxygen is the most abundant element in the Earth's crust. Oxygen makes up 467,100 ppm (parts per million) of the Earth's crust, or 46.6%. It exists as a major compound of

Sneezing with Open Eyes

Did You Know? It's extremely hard to sneeze with your eyes open. Although you can focus to keep your eyes open when sneezing, your body's blinking response is likely there to protect itself from germs. The changing weather brings about many things: holiday excitement, a different wardrobe and -- perhaps most annoyingly -- cold and flu season. Those around you have likely been sneezing more frequently, which may have prompted you to ponder, perhaps while applying mascara or driving in bumper-to-bumper traffic, if it is possible to sneeze with your eyes open. David Huston, MD, associate dean of the Texas A&M College of Medicine Houston campus and an allergist at Houston Methodist Hospital, said it is "absolutely possible" to sneeze without closing the eyes, but most people tend to automatically close their eyes when sneezing. It is an autonomic reflex, which is an unconscious motor action in response to a stimulus: in this case, sneezing. "The fact that it

ÀLL YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT CORONA VIRUS

Please see the image below All details are provided below in image Wuhan Virus Mains-GS2-Social Justice 1. Chinese scientists have confirmed that the mysterious coronavirus had killed at least six individuals. 2. Coronavirus is a type of virus named after its spiky, solar corona-like appearance under an electron microscope. 3. There is a possibility of a public health crisis in the peak travel season as the virus is transmitted through human-to-human interaction. About the virus 1. The first cases emerged in Wuhan and have remained the epicentre of the outbreak. 2. The virus has also been reported from South Korea, Hongkong, and nearby regions. 3. The virus is known also as ‘2019-nCoV’ is a new strain of coronavirus that has not previously been identified in humans. 4. Animals are likely regarded as a primary source. Novel CoV 1. Coronaviruses are a large group of viruses that are common among animals. 2. They are zoonotic in nature in rare cases. It means they can be transmitted from

Article: Apple Watch Users Can Now Monitor How Bodies React To Coronavirus

Apple Watch has been lauded by most to be the best smartwatch out there. This is not only because of how well it works but also because of the sheer health and wellness features it brings to the table. Now, Cardiogram - a heart health application for Apple Watch - is introducing a new feature that will give users more information on how their body is responding to a COVID-19/flu. The new feature called Sleeping BPM revolves around how our body reacts while we're fighting an infection like COVID-19."Cardiogram's new Sleeping BPM feature can help users become more aware of how their body is responding to symptoms of the flu or other illnesses including COVID-19," said Johnson Hsieh, Cardiogram's co-founder to Apple Insider . He further went on to explain how this feature works. When we're sick, cells in our immune system release small proteins called histamines which cause inflammation and expansion of blood cells. This process sends signals to our brain to in

Cat Breeds

Did You Know? There are more than 40 cat breeds. The two largest organizations are the Cat Fanciers Association (CFA), which operates mostly in North America, and its European counterpart, Federation Internationale Feline (FIFe). CFA recognizes 45 cat breeds at present. The newest additions are the Khao Manee and Lykoi. Both allowed to compete in cat shows starting in 2018. FIFe recognizes 51 cat breeds. These differing numbers do not mean that FIFe recognizes five more breeds than CFA does. There are quite a few breeds that are unique to each organization; for example, the German Rex is one that FIFe acknowledges, while only the CFA recognizes the Ragamuffin. In general, Europeans seem to be more open to recognizing short- and long-haired versions as different breeds, such as long- and short-haired American curls and Selkirk Rexes, while the CFA says that these are two versions of the same breed. The total number of distinct breeds recognized by either or both the CFA and FIFe is 64.

Brain Connections

Did You Know? New brain connections are created every time you form a memory. People often compare the brain to a computer, but the brain doesn't have USB slots that allow you to pick up new information by jamming a flash drive in your ear. That would be convenient, if a little painful. So where do we get all this information sloshing around in our skulls? You might imagine human memory is a bit like a Santa's sack filled with life events, song lyrics and the first half of jokes. But in truth, "memory" is not one single solid thing. It is a term covering lots of types of recollections that are surprisingly distinct, and used constantly in different combinations by a typical human.

LIMIT OF RUNNING! IS HUMAN BETTER THAN OTHER ANIMALS?

Did You Know? Humans can outrun almost every animal on earth over long distances. When it comes to long distances, humans can outrun almost any animal. Because we cool by sweating rather than panting, we can stay cool at speeds and distances that would overheat other animals. On a hot day, a human could even outrun a horse in a 26.2-mile marathon.

Men vs Women Running | amazing facts

Did You Know? Because men's hearts are 20 - 25% larger than women's, especially the left ventricle, men can run longer and more easily than women. Men's hearts are 20-25% larger than women's, particularly in the left ventricle. This increases the ability to pump oxygenated blood around the body to be used in the muscles, making it easier for males to run faster for longer. The primary male hormone is testosterone, which stimulates muscle mass development. The female primary hormone is estrogen, which stimulates fat accumulation. Testosterone also increases the concentration of red blood cells, and hemoglobin, both critical for transporting oxygen around the body. This means that on average male blood can carry around 11% more oxygen than female blood to increase efficiency to run faster.

HORSE CAN SLEEP WHILE STANDING!

Horses first lived in the wild where their flight-or-fight instinct became very strong. As a result, sleeping standing up enabled the horse to flee quickly when danger was sensed. Lying down to sleep significantly reduced the horse's ability to run away fast. Do horses ever lie down and sleep? Yes! In fact, many horses prefer to sleep lying down than standing up simply because it is much more comfortable. It is not uncommon to see a herd of horses, many of them lying down, but with at least one standing up. The standing horse is keeping watch over the others, keeping eye on any potential predators or other signs of danger. HORSE When a horse is sleeping while standing they are not in a deep sleep, but are in a lighter sleep or snoozing. However, like humans, horses do need to have REM or rapid eye movement sleep that occurs during deep sleep. Also like humans, horses engage in slow-wave sleep (also known as SWS). To do this, the horse must lie down, not just with its legs tucked un

Tree Hugging in China

Did You Know? Tree hugging is forbidden in China. Tree hugging is forbidden in china. In China, you can get into trouble for hugging trees. After the mass tree hugging outside China's imperial garden, Zhongnanhai, a few years ago, the Chinese government concluded that the tree huggers were a dangerous cult and a threat to national unity.

KNOWLEDGE TO GAIN

Search This Blog