Albert Einstein once said, “The important thing is to not stop questioning.” Let’s dive into some intriguing science questions and see if we can make Einstein proud!
Have you ever felt a chill run down your spine when something spooky happens or when you hear a powerful song? This sensation is linked to your brain. When you feel threatened, cold, or even touched in a pleasant way, a part of your brain called the hypothalamus sends signals to your adrenal glands. These glands release adrenaline, which can cause your muscles to shiver to generate heat or make the tiny muscles at the base of your hair stand up. This reaction would have helped our ancestors stay warm when they had more body hair. Emotional changes can also trigger this response, which is why you might get chills during an emotional song.
Have you noticed that hair on different parts of your body grows to different lengths? This is because hair grows in three phases. During the anagen phase, hair actively grows. This phase lasts weeks for eyelashes, months for body hair, and years for the hair on your head. After this, hair enters a transition phase before becoming dormant and eventually falling out. Each type of hair has a different growth limit based on these phases.
Saturn is a fascinating planet with many unique features. Besides its stunning rings, Saturn has polar auroras similar to Earth’s and a massive hexagonal storm at its pole. It also has at least 62 moons, one of which resembles the Death Star from Star Wars. Interestingly, Saturn is so light that it would float if there were a large enough pool of water. Its rings are incredibly thin, only about ten meters thick, but they stretch across 150,000 kilometers!
There’s a myth that you can’t see stars in space because there’s no atmosphere. This isn’t true! Astronauts sometimes can’t see stars when they’re on the sunny side of Earth because the sunlight reflecting off Earth is too bright, similar to how you can’t see stars during the day. However, on the night side of Earth, without moonlight, astronauts can see stars clearly.
Root beer is known for its fizz, and there’s a reason for that! Originally, root beer was made from extracts of roots and barks, like sassafras, which contained proteins and sugars that created foam. When these natural extracts were deemed unsafe, soda makers used synthetic flavors and added foaming agents to maintain the beloved fizz.
While we usually think of years in terms of the Gregorian calendar, scientifically, Earth’s age is estimated to be about 4.54 billion years, with a margin of error of 50 million years. This estimate is based on Earth’s orbit around the sun and the age of the universe, which is approximately 13.798 billion years.
Light is fascinating because it can behave both like waves and particles. This dual nature is a fundamental concept in physics. For example, light waves can create patterns when they pass through slits, while light particles, called photons, can be counted individually. If you’re curious to learn more, check out videos from science educators like Derek at Veritasium for an in-depth explanation.
Keep asking questions and exploring the wonders of science. Stay curious!
Try to recreate the sensation of chills by listening to different types of music. Note down which songs give you chills and discuss why you think this happens. Consider the emotions and memories associated with each song.
Conduct a simple experiment by observing hair growth on different parts of your body over a few weeks. Record your observations and compare the growth rates. Discuss why you think hair grows differently in various areas.
Create a model of Saturn using craft materials. Include its rings and some of its moons. Present your model to the class and explain what makes Saturn unique, including its ability to float in water.
Use a planetarium app or software to simulate star gazing from space. Explore how stars appear differently from the night side of Earth compared to the sunny side. Share your findings with the class.
Conduct an experiment to compare the fizz levels of different sodas, including root beer. Discuss the ingredients that contribute to the fizz and why root beer is particularly foamy. Present your results in a chart.
Here’s a sanitized version of the YouTube transcript:
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Albert Einstein once said, “The important thing is to not stop questioning.” Let’s see if you can make Einstein proud in another edition of Ask Joe Stuff. [Funky music]
Creativity asks: “Hey Joe! Why do humans get the ‘chill-down-their-spine’ feeling when they experience something eerie?” Well, sometimes it happens when you’re scared, and sometimes when you hear that song you love that brings a rush of joy or sadness. And sometimes, when you’re just plain cold. But it’s all in your head. Whenever we feel threatened or chilly, or when someone touches us in a way that we’ve consented to and found pleasant, a region in our brains called the hypothalamus sends a signal to our adrenal glands to release adrenaline. Yes, very creative gland name. Among other things, adrenaline can trigger rapid muscle contractions to create heat by shivering, or it can cause tiny muscles attached to our hair follicles to stand on end. This would have created more insulation back when we had actual fur. The hypothalamus can also be triggered by rapid changes in emotion, which is also why you can get chills from that one part of a song… You know what I’m talking about. [Perfect pitch singing]
Speaking of hair, Calicoat asks: “Why does human hair have no growth limit?” Well, body hair, like the very short hair on our arms, seems to be stuck short while hair on our heads seems to grow without limits. And some hair, like pubic hair, is somewhere in between. But it turns out that all hair has a growth limit; it’s just that the limit is different for different types of hair. Hair grows in three phases. In the anagen phase, it’s actively growing and getting longer. For an eyelash, that might just be weeks, for body hair about a few months, while the hair on our heads will actively grow for many years. Then all types of hair enter a transition phase for several weeks where they grow from a growing hair to a dormant hair. Finally, they end their existence in a dormant phase before falling out and hopefully being replaced by another hair.
Thefirststarr says, “Saturn is your favorite planet, right? It’s mine too, but what features make it stand out above the others?” You mean besides its stunning rings and unique features? Saturn has awesome polar auroras just like Earth, a rotating hexagonal vortex on its pole that’s wider than Earth, and it has at least 62 moons, one of which looks like the Death Star. Saturn is only 60% as dense as water and would float in a very large swimming pool. Its rings are only ten meters thick despite being 150,000 kilometers across. So, besides that, not much!
Janderson9788 says, “I heard you can’t see stars in space with the naked eye because there’s no atmosphere to absorb the light for you to see it. Is this true?” Absolutely not! Astronauts can’t always see stars from orbit, but it doesn’t have to do with the lack of atmosphere. They can’t see stars for the same reason you can’t see stars if you walk outside at noon: the sun. If astronauts are on the sunny side of Earth, a huge amount of light is being reflected off of Earth’s surface, making it hard to see those dim little specks of light. It’s like how it’s hard to look out a window into the dark of night when you’re in a lit room. If an astronaut is on the night side of Earth and there’s no light from the moon, they can definitely see stars.
Prospero101 asks, “Why does root beer fizz so much more than other sodas?” It does, and I love this question! Root beer used to be made from flavor extracts steeped from roots and barks, like sassafras, which is why it’s called root beer. These extracts contain various proteins and sugars from plants, and when those are mixed or experience turbulence, they often form foams. The FDA declared those root extracts to be toxic a few decades ago, so soda makers had to replace them with synthetic flavors. But people were used to having nice foamy root beer, so soda makers added synthetic foaming agents to keep that delightful fizz.
Karenhart28 asks, “What year is it? Not in the Gregorian calendar, but what actual scientific year for the Earth is it?” If we calculate today’s date based on the age of the universe from the Big Bang, we get approximately 13.798 billion years, plus or minus 0.037 billion years. The whole idea of a year is based on Earth’s orbit around the sun. Scientists have pegged Earth’s age at about 4.54 billion years with an uncertainty of 50 million years. So, it’s somewhere between 4,490,000,000 and 4,590,000,000 years old.
Bharat Narang asks, “Can you give some examples where light behaves like waves and where it behaves like particles?” Sure! But first, I want to remind everyone that you can submit your questions about science or anything else for the next Ask Joe down in the comments. You can also follow me on Twitter or at itsokaytobesmart.com. Now check out these videos from our friend Derek at Veritasium, explaining all of the wave-particle goodness that is light. His videos are… [cue music] illuminating. Thanks, and stay curious!
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This version removes informal language and maintains a more neutral tone while preserving the original content’s essence.
Chills – A feeling of coldness often accompanied by shivering, which can occur when the body is fighting an infection or reacting to a sudden drop in temperature. – When the body detects a virus, it might cause chills as a way to increase body temperature and fight off the infection.
Brain – The organ in the head of humans and other animals that controls thought, memory, emotion, and many other functions of the body. – The brain processes information from our senses and helps us make decisions based on that information.
Hair – A filamentous biomaterial that grows from follicles found in the dermis, primarily composed of keratin. – The hair on mammals serves various functions, including protection, regulation of body temperature, and facilitation of evaporation of perspiration.
Saturn – The sixth planet from the Sun in our solar system, known for its prominent ring system. – Saturn’s rings are made up of ice and rock particles, and they are the most extensive ring system of any planet in our solar system.
Stars – Massive, luminous spheres of plasma held together by gravity, which produce light and heat from nuclear reactions in their cores. – Stars like our Sun are essential for life on Earth because they provide the energy needed for plants to grow and produce oxygen.
Earth – The third planet from the Sun in our solar system, and the only known planet to support life. – Earth has a diverse range of environments, from deserts to rainforests, which support a wide variety of life forms.
Light – Electromagnetic radiation that is visible to the human eye and is responsible for the sense of sight. – Plants use light from the Sun to perform photosynthesis, a process that converts light energy into chemical energy.
Adrenaline – A hormone released by the adrenal glands that increases heart rate, muscle strength, and energy level, often in response to stress or excitement. – When faced with danger, the body releases adrenaline to prepare for a quick response, often referred to as the “fight or flight” reaction.
Phases – The different shapes of the visible part of the Moon as seen from Earth, which change in a regular cycle. – The phases of the Moon, such as new moon, first quarter, full moon, and last quarter, are caused by the relative positions of the Earth, Moon, and Sun.
Fizz – The bubbles and hissing sound produced by a gas, especially carbon dioxide, escaping from a liquid. – When you open a bottle of soda, the fizz you hear is the carbon dioxide gas escaping from the liquid.
