How do high heels (Stilettos) affect your feet?

High heels are dangerous to your health.
When you are wearing high heels your legs are beautiful. You probably think high heels are the height of elegance. You should know that high heels can affect your health. Wearing high heels is your choice, but you should at least be aware of the problems related to high heals. Women have four times as many foot problems as men. Wearing high heels is a major reason for this. Physical problems associated with high heels include foot pain, foot deformities, a change in back posture, knee osteoarthritis and balance impairment. Orthopedists think that high heels can contribute to the development of a variety of conditions like arthritis, chronic knee pain, sprained ankles and back problems. High heels can also result in a variety of foot problems. High heels could be the cause of knee osteoarthritis, a painful, degenerative joint disease. The knee osteoarthritis is characterized by the breakdown of the cartilage surrounding the knee.
You could have ankle sprains and breaks from rolling over on high-heeled shoes. If you wear high heels you probably had this kind of problem. You should also know that high heels are pumps with heels of more than two inches.

High heels and Osteoarthritis
Wide heels increase the risk of developing osteoarthritis in the knee as much as, or more than, spindly-heeled stilettos. High heels increase knee joint pressure, this is repetitive stress to the knee elevates the risk for osteoarthritis. Low-heeled shoes or no heels are prevention for osteoarthritis.
Both types of shoes increased knee joint pressure 26 percent more for wide-heeled shoes and 22 percent for narrow-heeled shoes. This kind of repetitive stress to the knee elevates the risk for osteoarthritis. When you wear shoes with high heel it is long term effect to your knee, ankles and feet. The exact cause of osteoarthritis is unknown. Risk factors for osteoarthritis include injuries, age, congenital predisposition and obesity. Walking on high heels puts abnormal stress on both the front and the back of the knee.
The health of the cartilage that in the knee is dependent on the fluid in the knee. It absorbs the nutrients it needs from this liquid to repair itself. If you wear high heels stress on the knee restricts the absorption of the fluid, and the cartilage begins to dry out and shred.

High heels and foot problems
Feet are designed to provide you with balance and strength as you walk or run over many different types of terrain. High-heels could change the shape of your feet and may eventually prevent them from functioning properly. Foot problem related to high heels is metatarsalgia, which is pain in the ball of the foot. If the joints of your feet don’t work properly because of the strain of wearing high heels, other areas of your body are forced to compensate and suffer extra wear and tear. The Morton's neuroma, which is 10 times more common in women than men, is caused by a thickening of tissue around a nerve between the third and fourth toes. The Morton's neuroma, could develop as response to irritation and excessive pressure such as the weight burden high heels place on the ball of the foot. Treatments of the Morton's neuroma include orthotics, cortisone injections and in some cases, surgery. If you wear very high heels, you should know that can cause the calf muscles and Achilles tendons to become permanently shortened. You should know that other tendons and connective tissues can also become permanently disfigured. If you only wear high heels whole area could be reshaped for high heel wear only, even to the exact measurement of one pair of heels. If the skin on the bottom of your feet gets hard, you should treat it. It can become very painful.
You should know that shin splints can happen when very high heels are worn. When the anterior tibial muscletears away from the bone can cause pain when the muscle is used. If your shin splints you should have gentle stretching exercises, such as swimming. Sometimes wearing shoe inserts to support the foot could help. You should consult your doctor about shoe inserts.


High heels and falls
High heels impaired balance in both the younger and older women when the brain received dissimilar information from the eyes and the senses in the legs. When older women wear high heels might be at greater risk for falls. Being overweight means extra stress for your feet, not to mention the joints of your legs and spine. If you overweight and you are wearing high heels that are extra stress for your feet, joints and ankles. Toppling over on very high heels can cause a broken ankle, wrist fractures and worse condition.


High heel and headaches
Wearing high heels on a regular basis can cause toe pain, mid foot pain, heel pain, ankle pain, knee pain, hip pain, lower back pain, mid back pain, upper back pain, and headaches. When you wearing high heels that cause unnecessary stress on your ankles, knees, pelvis, and potentially throughout your entire spine. The compensatory changes that result from wearing heels can cause the muscles behind your neck to be stiff, putting pressure on nerves that can result in chronic headaches.


High heels and deep vein thrombosis

Standing for long periods of time in high heels can cause deep vein thrombosis. You should know that standing even in low heels carries this risk. Deep vein thrombosis is condition in which blood clots form in deep veins, mainly in the legs.

Some good tips for you
You should never wear high heels all day long. When you are shopping shoes do it in the afternoon or evening. Feet because of accumulation are little bigger in the afternoon. Your shoes need to be comfortably for you. You should try shoes on both of your feet, because sometimes one foot may be larger than the other. Measure shoes while you are standing. Making sure the shoe fits properly is essential. Flat shoes are not the ideal for foot and leg health. Low heels are best for you. The healthiest shoes for women are those with fairly wide heels that are no more than a half or three-quarters of an inch in height. You should know that pain and other foot problems are less likely to occur if high heels are worn as infrequently as possible and are replaced by sneakers or flats as much as possible. Wearing extremely high heels can damage the feet, especially if the toes are pointed, or the shoes are too tight. Damage can sometimes be so extreme that the sufferer can never wear any high heel ever again. Starting with lower heels and practicing for short lengths of time, gradually building up the height and time will help to prevent shin splints. You should warm up the muscles before each wearing of high heels. The calf muscles should be stretched and exercised on a regular basis. Before putting heels you should run on the spot for a few minutes to warm up your muscles. After wearing your high heels for an extended period you should stand with your legs apart barefoot on the floor. Keeping your legs straight, bend at the hips and try to touch your toes. You should have warm-up and cool-down exercises every time you wear high heels. If you feel any pain in your ankles or feet while wearing your high heels, take them off immediately. Sometimes is best to not wear high heels at all.

Information Taken From:http://www.steadyhealth.com/articles/Could_high_heels_affect_your_health__a488.html

What is Biomass?

Biomass, a renewable energy source, is biological material derived from living, or recently living organisms, such as wood, waste, (hydrogen) gas, and alcohol fuels. Biomass is commonly plant matter grown to generate electricity or produce heat. In this sense, living biomass can also be included, as plants can also generate electricity while still alive. The most conventional way on how biomass is used however, still relies on direct incineration. Forest residues for example (such as dead trees, branches and tree stumps), yard clippings, wood chips and garbage are often used herefore. However, biomass also includes plant or animal matter used for production of fibers or chemicals. Biomass may also include biodegradable wastes that can be burnt as fuel. It excludes organic materials such as fossil fuels which have been transformed by geological processes into substances such as coal or petroleum.

Surface Tension

Surface tension is a property of the surface of a liquid. It is what causes the surface portion of liquid to be attracted to another surface, such as that of another portion of liquid.Surface tension is caused by cohesion (the attraction of molecules to like molecules). Since the molecules on the surface of the liquid are not surrounded by like molecules on all sides, they are more attracted to their neighbors on the surface.Applying Newtonian physics to the forces that arise due to surface tension accurately predicts many liquid behaviors. Applying thermodynamics to those same forces further predicts other more subtle liquid behaviors.Surface tension has the dimension of force per unit length, or of energy per unit area. The two are equivalent—but when referring to energy per unit of area, people use the term surface energy—which is a more general term in the sense that it applies also to solids and not just liquids.In materials science, surface tension is used for either surface stress or surface free energy.

Taken From: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surface_tension

How heat travels

Heat can be transferred from one place to another by three methods: conduction in solids, convection of fluids (liquids or gases), and radiation through anything that will allow radiation to pass. The method used to transfer heat is usually the one that is the most efficient. If there is a temperature difference in a system, heat will always move from higher to lower temperatures.




A thermal infrared image of a coffee cup filled with a hot liquid. Notice the rings of color showing heat traveling from the hot liquid through the metal cup. You can see this in the metal spoon as well. This is a good example of conduction.

Conduction occurs when two object at different temperatures are in contact with each other. Heat flows from the warmer to the cooler object until they are both at the same temperature. Conduction is the movement of heat through a substance by the collision of molecules. At the place where the two object touch, the faster-moving molecules of the warmer object collide with the slower moving molecules of the cooler object. As they collide, the faster molecules give up some of their energy to the slower molecules. The slower molecules gain more thermal energy and collide with other molecules in the cooler object. This process continues until heat energy from the warmer object spreads throughout the cooler object. Some substances conduct heat more easily than others. Solids are better conductor than liquids and liquids are better conductor than gases. Metals are very good conductors of heat, while air is very poor conductor of heat. You experience heat transfer by conduction whenever you touch something that is hotter or colder than your skin e.g. when you wash your hands in warm or cold water.

Taken from: http://coolcosmos.ipac.caltech.edu/cosmic_classroom/light_lessons/thermal/transfer.html

If we jump on a moving vehicle, will we end up at the same spot?

Yes. We will. When we jump up, we will have the same velocity as the moving vehicle and we will end up at the same spot. It is the same for throwing a ball up into the air when you are in a moving vehicle. However, This all depends on how straight you jump or whether the vehicle is moving at a constant speed or whether the cabin is closed. This affects the results as the air in the cabin moves at the same speed as the train. But if the driver hits the gas just as you throw it up, then things might be a bit different, the ball might fall behind, and seem to come back towards the rear of the car.
Taken From: www.newton.dep.anl.gov/askasci/phy00/phy00855.htm

Why does the colour black trap more heat than lighter colours?

Why do we see colours?
IT is because the light is made of many different colours and for exampl yellow, it absorbs all the other colours but reflects yellow. Therefore, we see yellow. Black is black as it absorbs all the colours of the light. Therefore, the absorbed light is turned into heat and it is warmer than the other colours if you wear it on hot days.

Hydroelectrical dams

Hydroelectricity is electricity generated by hydropower, i.e., the production of electrical power through the use of the gravitational force of falling or flowing water. It is the most widely used form of renewable energy. Once a hydroelectric complex is constructed, the project produces no direct waste, and has a considerably lower output level of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide (CO2) than fossil fuel powered energy plants.
Most hydroelectric power comes from the potential energy of dammed water driving a water turbine and generator. In this case the energy extracted from the water depends on the volume and on the difference in height between the source and the water's outflow. This height difference is called the head. The amount of potential energy in water is proportional to the head. To deliver water to a turbine while maintaining pressure arising from the head, a large pipe called a penstock may be used.
Disadvantages:
Dam failures have been some of the largest man-made disasters in history. Also, good design and construction are not an adequate guarantee of safety. Dams are tempting industrial targets for wartime attack, sabotage and terrorism.

For example, the Banqiao Dam failure in Southern China directly resulted in the deaths of 26,000 people, and another 145,000 from epidemics. Millions were left homeless. Also, the creation of a dam in a geologically inappropriate location may cause disasters like the one of the Vajont Dam in Italy, where almost 2000 people died, in 1963.

What are the different types of energy and what are they?

Kinetic Energy:
The kinetic energy of an object is the extra energy which it possesses due to its motion.
Potential Energy:
In physics, Potential energy is energy stored within a physical system as a result of the position or configuration of the different parts of that system. It has the potential to be converted into other forms of energy, such as kinetic energy, and to do work in the process.
Types of Potential Energy:
1) Gravitational potential energy
Gravitational energy is the potential energy associated with gravitational force.
2) Electrical Potential Energy
An object can have potential energy by virtue of its electric charge and several forces related to their presence.
Heat energy:
Heat is the process of energy transfer from one body or system due to thermal contact, which in turn is defined as an energy transfer to a body in any other way than due to work performed on the body.
Solar energy:
Solar energy, radiant light and heat from the sun, has been harnessed by humans since ancient times using a range of ever-evolving technologies. Solar radiation, along with secondary solar-powered resources such as wind and wave power, hydroelectricity and biomass, account for most of the available renewable energy on earth.
Sound Energy:
Sound is a travelling wave which is an oscillation of pressure transmitted through a solid, liquid, or gas, composed of frequencies within the range of hearing and of a level sufficiently strong to be heard, or the sensation stimulated in organs of hearing by such vibrations.

What Is Energy?

Enery is a quantity that can be assigned to every particle, object and system of objects. Different forms of energy include kinetic, potential, thermal, gravitational, sound, elastic, light, and electromagnetic energy. Energy is a scalar physical quantity. In the International System of Units (SI), energy is measured in joules, but in some fields other units such as kilowatt-hours and kilocalories are also used. Any form of energy can be transformed into another form. When energy is in a form other than heat, it may be transformed with good or even perfect efficiency, to any other type of energy. With thermal energy, however, there are often limits to the efficiency of the conversion to other forms of energy, due to the second law of thermodynamics.

Pressure: Why is there more pressure on a women stiletto heels than on an elephants four legs.

Pressure is exactly equal to force divided by surface area. If that fact is true it is because the whole elephants weight (force) is spread out over four feet of relatively large surface area. A womans weight is only on her two (smaller) feet. If she leans on the back of her high heels all the weight (force) shifts to the tiny points of the stillettos. To find out how much more pressure is on the stillettos, just take the weight divided by the approximate surface area of the high heel. But since elephants weigh up to 13000 pounds, about 100 times what a woman weighs the heels would need to be (since only two heels to an elephants 4 feet) about 50 times smaller than an elephants foot to get equal pressure so it seems possible.

Taken from: wikipedia

THE MOON"S GRAVITATIONAL PULL

The word "tides" is a generic term used to define the alternating rise and fall in sea level with respect to the land, produced by the gravitational attraction of the moon and the sun. To a much smaller extent, tides also occur in large lakes, the atmosphere, and within the solid crust of the earth, acted upon by these same gravitational forces of the moon and sun.
What are Lunar Tides
Tides are created because the Earth and the moon are attracted to each other, just like magnets are attracted to each other. The moon tries to pull at anything on the Earth to bring it closer. But, the Earth is able to hold onto everything except the water. Since the water is always moving, the Earth cannot hold onto it, and the moon is able to pull at it. Each day, there are two high tides and two low tides. The ocean is constantly moving from high tide to low tide, and then back to high tide. There is about 12 hours and 25 minutes between the two high tides.

Tides are the periodic rise and falling of large bodies of water. Winds and currents move the surface water causing waves. The gravitational attraction of the moon causes the oceans to bulge out in the direction of the moon. Another bulge occurs on the opposite side, since the Earth is also being pulled toward the moon (and away from the water on the far side). Ocean levels fluctuate daily as the sun, moon and earth interact. As the moon travels around the earth and as they, together, travel around the sun, the combined gravitational forces cause the world's oceans to rise and fall. Since the earth is rotating while this is happening, two tides occur each day.
What are the different types of Tides
When the sun and moon are aligned, there are exceptionally strong gravitational forces, causing very high and very low tides which are called spring tides, though they have nothing to do with the season. When the sun and moon are not aligned, the gravitational forces cancel each other out, and the tides are not as dramatically high and low. These are called neap tides.

Spring Tides
When the moon is full or new, the gravitational pull of the moon and sun are combined. At these times, the high tides are very high and the low tides are very low. This is known as a spring high tide. Spring tides are especially strong tides (they do not have anything to do with the season Spring). They occur when the Earth, the Sun, and the Moon are in a line. The gravitational forces of the Moon and the Sun both contribute to the tides. Spring tides occur during the full moon and the new moon.

Neap Tides
During the moon's quarter phases the sun and moon work at right angles, causing the bulges to cancel each other. The result is a smaller difference between high and low tides and is known as a neap tide. Neap tides are especially weak tides. They occur when the gravitational forces of the Moon and the Sun are perpendicular to one another (with respect to the Earth). Neap tides occur during quarter moons.

The Proxigean Spring Tide is a rare, unusually high tide. This very high tide occurs when the moon is both unusually close to the Earth (at its closest perigee, called the proxigee) and in the New Moon phase (when the Moon is between the Sun and the Earth). The proxigean spring tide occurs at most once every 1.5 years.

Taken From: http://home.hiwaay.net/~krcool/Astro/moon/moontides/

YouTube - Cartesian Diver - by Sim Mong Chea

YouTube - Cartesian Diver - by Sim Mong Chea

Cartesian Diver.

This is the simplest explanation I could find:
When pressure is applied to the bottle of water, the liqiud in the bottle will cause the air in the "Diver" to be compressed. When it is compressed, the volume of the air in the "Diver" decreases. Therefore, the density also increases. When the density increases, the "Diver" would sink to the bottom of the bottle.
When we let go of the bottle, there would be less pressure and the air in the "Diver" would go back to its original volume and its density would decrease and it would float.

Taken From: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ySISRfNkDiE&feature=related

YouTube - Mythbusters Lava Lamp Part 2

YouTube - Mythbusters Lava Lamp Part 2

YouTube - Mythbusters Lava Lamp Part 1

YouTube - Mythbusters Lava Lamp Part 1

Lava Lamps

Lava Lamps are novelty items normally used for decorations. But What are the blobs floating up and down the lamp?? Those blobs are wax.
The lamp contains a halogen lamp that heats a bottle containing water and the wax(usually transparent translucent or opaque) up. Wax is slightly denser than water at room temperature. However, when its heated up, it becomes less dense. This is because wax expends more than water when both are heated. When heated the wax becomes more fluid and its specific gravity increases and the blobs of wax ascend to the top of the device where they cool and then descend. There is a metallic coil of wire at the bottom of the bottle acts as a surface tension to recombine the cooled blobs of wax.

Hazards of the lava lamp:
In 2004, Phillip Quinn, was killed in an attept to heat a lava lamp on his kitchen stove while observing it a few feet away. The heat fro the fire built up pressure in the lamp and it exploded. The glass broke and it was strong enough to pierce through his chest, heart and causing fatal injuries. The circumstances were proved and comfirmed in a popular science series, Mythbusters. The show also noted that even if the glass did not was not iwth lethal velocity during such an attempt, the hot wax would be enough to cause severe burns. They noted that no one should ever heat a lava lamp on a kitchen stove.

Some Videos:(PART 1) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W7_dVUx5lZU
(PART 2) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=azHzE-5cO3A&feature=related

What Is Density??????????

Density is the physical property of matter. It is defined as its mass per unit volume. The symbol is a 'P', greek for Rho.

The History of Density:
In a well-known tale, Archimedes was given the task of determining whether King Hiero's goldsmith was embezzling gold during the manufacture of a wreath dedicated to the gods and replacing it with another, cheaper alloy.

Archimedes knew that the irregularly shaped wreath could be crushed into a cube whose volume could be calculated easily and compared with the mass; but the king did not approve of this.

Baffled, Archimedes took a relaxing immersion bath and observed from the rise of the warm water upon entering that he could calculate the volume of the gold crown through the displacement of the water. Allegedly, upon this discovery, he went running naked through the streets shouting, "Eureka! Eureka!" . As a result, the term "eureka" entered common parlance and is used today to indicate a moment of enlightenment.

The story first appeared in written form in Vitruvius' books of architecture, two centuries after it supposedly took place. Some scholars have doubted the accuracy of this tale, saying among other things that the method would have required precise measurements that would have been difficult to make at the time.

Information taken from:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Density

Face Blotters

Most women would have at least a pack of these in their handbags or in their cosmetic pouch. Many people like seeing the oily stains on the paper, like me :D, tissue paper works in just the same way. Anyway, if you squeeze the oil out, your skin will get drier and it just results in more facial oil. These face blotters also make no difference in helping to control the facial oil. Another thing to avoid is powedered facial blotters as the powder would just cover up thepores in your face and will potentially cause more skin problems in the future.
Hope theses tips have helped you!!!! :D

Info taken from:http://www.vivawoman.net