Are you really you?

Who am I? Have a you ever read a spiritual article and come across this question. But don't worry, I am not going to talk about your soul and spirituality. But still, I wish to ask you this question. What would be your answer when asked - who are you? Some of us will say their names and some will talk about their other credentials. But what makes you different from other animals? Some will say that "I am a human". But are we really humans? Let's see why we can't technically call ourselves humans.

Microbial world in you- A human body consists of many different types of bacteria and their population outnumbers the human cells. According to earlier estimates, microbes outnumber human cells in the ratio of 10 to1. However, this figure has been revised recently in favor of human cells but still the ratio stands at 1.3 to1. A standard man who weighs 70 kilograms, 20 to 30 years old and 1.7 m tall, consists of on an average about 30 trillion human cells and  40 trillion bacteria. The number of different species in human gut lies somewhere between 300 and 1000, with most estimates at about 500. Most of this bacteria is not harmful to humans at all, but rather assists in maintaining health. These microbes help in the digestion of unutilized  energy substrates.

Human cells heavy hitters- The cells which are most numerous are red blood cells which are around 24.9 trillion. But the cells which contribute most to our mass are muscle cells. Since, women have lesser blood volume, so their bacteria to human cell ratio may be 30 percent higher than that of men.

 Toilet makes you more you- Most of the bacteria live in our colon which is around 39 trillion. Through every bowel movement, you get rid of a few trillion bacteria and the ratio is flipped in favor of human cells. So, if some wise person advises you to be yourself, then you must clarify whether he wants you to go to toilet.

We know now that if you really wanna be you, go to the loo.

References-
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_microbiota
http://www.nature.com/news/scientists-bust-myth-that-our-bodies-have-more-bacteria-than-human-cells-1.19136
https://www.sciencenews.org/article/body%E2%80%99s-bacteria-don%E2%80%99t-outnumber-human-cells-so-much-after-all
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gut_flora

How empty are we? A nerdy challenge.

Anna invited his three friends Raga, Arke and Namo to his home for a party. The party was going on very well and they discussed many issues. Slowly, the discussion heated up and Raga said that he was the most intelligent among those invited. But Arke and Namo also made similar claims. This annoyed Anna and to resolve the issue, Anna gave them a challenge and whosoever won was to be given a dollar each by other two. They sat around a table and Anna started pouring water into a glass and filled it up to the midpoint of its height. Then they had the following conversation-

Anna- On by one, you have to tell me whether this glass is half empty or half full. One who gives the right answer will win. Raga, you tell first.
Raga- Obviously, it is half empty.
Anna- And you Arke?
Arke- No, I think it is half full.
Anna- And what do you think Namo?
Namo- It is neither half empty nor half full. It is half filled with water and half filled with air. So, it is completely filled.
Anna looked at all them with disappointment.
Anna- Unfortunately, you all are wrong. Now stop fighting and enjoy the party.

But, how were they all wrong?  This is because Anna was smart and he knew that everything around us is pretty empty. Even a glass full of water is actually empty. To believe it we need to look things at the atomic level.

Amazing atom- You and all the things around you are made up of atoms. An atom is made up of a nucleus surrounded by a cloud of electrons. Nucleus consists of protons and neutrons. Protons and neutrons are made up of quarks. Electrons orbit around the nucleus at the speed of 2,200 Km/sec. At this speed you can travel around the earth in about 18 seconds. But the fact which Anna used is that an atom is 99.999999999999% empty space. If an atom would have been of the size of a football stadium then the nucleus would have been of the size of a pea at the center of the stadium.

Since, an atom is mostly empty space and everything is made up of atoms, we can say that everything is almost empty. But that empty space is not really empty and consists of quantum fluctuations. So, Anna could have given benefit of doubt to Namo but Anna was not in the mood of letting any of them win. 

Now, whenever we feel sad and have that feeling of emptiness, we know now that we were always like this, quite empty.

Resources-

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atom

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_lNF3_30lUE

Mobile phone radiation and its effects on living beings

Mobile phones have become an integral part of our lives. So much so that, a cellphone can be called as an extended part of our bodies. We start feeling uneasy when separated from our phones. There are more than 4 billion mobile phone users in the world. Mobile phones have made our lives much easier by enabling us to remain connected to the rest of the world. But as with most scientific inventions, there are some side-effects. We are continuously surrounded by radiation from mobile phones and mobile towers. Whether this radiation is harmful to living beings or not is still debatable. There have been many studies carried out on the subject. Before discussing them, we first need to understand what are ionising and non-ionising radiations.

Ionising radiation- If a radiation carries enough energy to knock out electrons from atoms or molecules, then such radiation is an ionising radiation. Gamma rays and X-rays are examples of ionising radiations. This type of radiation is harmful to living beings. Exposure to such radiation can lead to burns, cancers and genetic mutations. So, it is better to stay away from them, unless you want to mutate to get supernatural powers but chances of death after such exposure are much much higher than turning into spiderman.

Non-ionising radiation- If an electromagnetic radiation does not carry enough energy to knock out electrons from atoms or molecules, then such radiation is non-ionising radiation. Sunlight, infrared waves and mobile tower radiation are its examples. They do not produce any lethal effects in living tissues like ionising radiation.

But is exposure to mobile phone radiation completely safe?   In 2011, International Agency for Research on Cancer classified mobile phone radiation as possibly carcinogenic. But WHO added that "to date, no adverse health effects have been established as being caused by mobile phone use". The mobile phone radiation does produce a heating effect and leads to rise in temperature of the surface of the head by a fraction of a degree. But this rise is smaller than the increase in temperature of head under direct sunlight. And to find a link between cancer and mobile phone usage, a Danish group followed 420,000 citizens for 20 years and they showed no increased risk of cancer. But in 2007, a Swedish scientist found that cell phone users had increased risk of tumors and these tumors are more likely to occur on the side of the head that the mobile handset is used. So, we are still not sure whether that next call to your friend is taking you closer to tumor or not. But what about animals? They are also exposed to mobile radiation from towers all the time. Have they been affected in any way?

Effects on other living beings-In 2010, a group of experts in India reviewed 919 studies performed worldwide regarding the effects of cellphone towers on birds, insects, animals, wildlife and humans. Out of the 919 studies, 593 showed that mobile towers radiation had negative impact on animal life. They also held it responsible as a possible cause of decline in population of some species. In another study by Centre for Environment and Vocational Studies, Punjab, 50 eggs of house sparrows were exposed to EMR for 5-10 minutes and all the 50 embryos were found to be damaged. There has been a massive decline in population of house sparrows in most Indian cities in recent years. In 2014, an environmental science experts team attributed this disappearance of house sparrows to mobile radiation. According to them, long term exposure to mobile radiation has damaging effects on the nervous and immune system of small animals. Also, many species use magnetic navigation and mobile radiation can interfere with their sensors and misguide them while navigating and preying.

So, that shiny smart phone in your hands is radiating waves which may or may not be harmful to us but it looks as if they do have a negative impact on our smaller partners on this planet. We know now that our desire of staying connected might be getting fulfilled by the lives of birds and insects. Let's hope that future studies prove this wrong.  

References-
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/environment/pollution/Mobile-tower-radiation/articleshow/32348258.cms
http://naturalsociety.com/cellphone-tower-emr-damaging-birds-insects-humans/
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/nagpur/Radiation-from-mobile-towers-affect-birds-MoEF-study/articleshow/10487141.cms
http://www.moef.nic.in/downloads/public-information/final_mobile_towers_report.pdf
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Non-ionizing_radiation
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ionizing_radiation
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mobile_phone_radiation_and_health

What color is a mirror?

Mirror, mirror, on the wall, who is the fairest of them all.... That mirror in the story of Snow White was surely magical. But mirrors in real life are also special. Have you ever wondered, what is the color of a mirror? The color of a mirror obviously depends upon its surroundings. The color of an object which you view in the mirror becomes its color. This means that a mirror simply keeps changing its color according to the objects viewed in it. But most other objects normally don't do so. Then what is it that makes mirrors so different? To answer this question, we first need to understand what is a color and what makes things colorful.

What is a color?- Objects by themselves have no color. They simply reflect light falling on them. White light consists of all the colors or wavelengths in the visible spectrum. When a white light falls on an object, it reflects some wavelengths and absorbs the rest. The color corresponding to those reflected wavelengths becomes the color of that object. For example, a red apple is red because it reflects the wavelength corresponding to red color and absorbs most of the rest of the spectrum.

Case of mirror- By above logic, a white object is white as it reflects all the white light or entire visible spectrum falling on it. But then, a mirror also reflects the entire visible spectrum falling on it. Then how is a mirror different from a white object? Why don't we see images in every white object? The answer lies in the type of reflection taking place. There are two types of reflections- diffuse reflection and specular reflection.

Image by GianniG46 - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=11902338

 Diffuse reflection- In diffuse reflection, the incident ray is reflected in many directions rather than a single direction. It happens because of the multiple reflections taking place beneath the surface of the object. So, when some light finally comes out again from the surface, it can come out in any direction. The light coming to your eyes is a mix of light falling on the object from different directions and you can not see an image in such mixture of rays. This is what happens when you see a white sheet of paper. The light falling on it is reflected back but in different directions and because of this, the image is lost after reflection. In case of red apple, the light corresponding to red color is reflected in many directions and rest of the light is absorbed. So, you see an apple as red in color, without any mirror like images on it. But then how do mirrors work and how are slight images formed on other glossy objects?. This is where specular reflection comes into picture.

Specular reflection- In specular reflection, a ray of light from a single incoming direction is reflected in a single outgoing direction. This is what happens on very smooth surfaces and mirrors. The light rays remain organized,  image remains intact after reflection and this allows images to be seen. For example, if incident rays are parallel then reflected rays are also parallel. To make specular reflection possible, mirrors have a reflecting coating which is usually aluminum or silver.

Mirrors are different from white paper in the way they reflect light. Mirrors show images because of specular reflection while white paper is white because of diffuse reflection. And there are many other objects like glossy white marbles in which the effect of both types of reflections is visible.

If you still want to know the color of mirror, the answer is that it is slightly green. This is because most mirrors reflect green light better than other parts of the spectrum and this gives mirrors a slight greenish tinge.

So, specular reflection makes mirrors possible and diffuse reflection allows us to see most of the things around us. The mirror in your bathroom might not reply to your questions, as in Snow White, but we know now that it does have some magical physics working under the surface.

References-
https://www.rgbworld.com/color.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Specular_reflection
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diffuse_reflection

Antibiotic pollution and super-bugs

You must have heard from your doctor or some other wise person that antibiotics should be taken only when needed and not overused. You must have also heard that if it does become necessary and you are under antibiotic therapy, then you must follow the treatment till the very end. But many of us don't follow this advice. We start feeling good during initial phase of treatment and then we leave taking antibiotics, well before the prescribed course is over.  

Why is it harmful to take antibiotics improperly? The problem is that when you start taking antibiotics, you kill weak disease causing bacteria and also a lot of good bacteria in your body. But if the treatment is incomplete, tough bacteria do not get killed and are able to grow and multiply quickly. Now, this tough bacteria is drug resistant and can spread to other people also.

This can also happen when you take antibiotics in much lower concentration then required to kill bacteria. In this case, bacteria is exposed to antibiotics in amounts which don't kill it but instead offer it a better opportunity to mutate and become resistant.

It is quite unfortunate that people themselves insist on antibiotics. One third of people believe that antibiotics are effective against common cold. It is the most common reason for which antibiotics are prescribed and people also go for self medication, even though antibiotics are useless against viruses. 

Antibiotics use in livestock- In the 20^th century, rising population gave rise to the problem of shortage of meat. In 1950, scientists found that adding antibiotics to animal feed increases growth rate of livestock. Since then, antibiotics are being used in animal farms to increase the growth rates of livestock, poultry, and other farmed animals. Although, proper use of antibiotics in farms prevents a lot of diseases in animals and stops them from spreading to humans but the real problem is overuse of such medicines. Similar to misuse in humans, it gives rise to drug resistant bacteria. When such animals are consumed by humans, these bacteria get an opportunity to spread among human population. 

Are vegetarians safe?- If you are congratulating yourself for being vegetarian, unfortunately, you are also not safe. This is because animal feces are used as manures for crops. And finally, from crops such bacteria can reach your guts.

Antibiotic pollution- About 80% of an antibiotic dose passes straight through the body. So, it is obvious that most of this medicine intake, both by humans as well as animals, ends up in waste water. Most water treatment plants also do not remove them. Waste water from hospitals and antibiotic factories are also a major source of this pollution. According to most researchers, antibiotics usage in world exceeds 250,000 tonnes each year. And this does not take into account release from pharmaceutical plants. Much of these antibiotics find their way into rivers, lakes and other water bodies.These ultimately give rise to the growth of drug resistant bacteria or super-bugs.

So, next time you are having common cold, think twice before popping that pill as it might give you an immediate relief but it might also convert you into a better breeding ground for super-bugs. We know now that improper medication can convert an antibiotic into an anti healthy body.

References-
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antibiotic_use_in_livestock
http://phys.org/news/2015-03-antibiotic-pollution-waterways-superbugs.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antimicrobial_resistance
http://www.wired.com/2014/12/oneill-rpt-amr/
https://newsinhealth.nih.gov/issue/feb2014/feature1