Skeptics Stack Exchange
Skeptics Stack Exchange

Questions tagged [physiology]

Human physiology is the science of the mechanical, physical, and biochemical functions of humans in good health, their organs, and the cells of which they are composed. The principal level of focus of physiology is at the level of organs and systems within systems.

Human physiology is the science of the mechanical, physical, and biochemical functions of humans in good health, their organs, and the cells of which they are composed. The principal level of focus of physiology is at the level of organs and systems within systems.

Physiology is closely related to anatomy; anatomy is the study of form, and physiology is the study of function. Due to the frequent connection between form and function physiology and anatomy are intrinsically linked and are studied in tandem as part of a medical curriculum.

348 questions
68
votes
1 answer

Do bras prevent you from getting saggy boobs?

I've heard this one repeated by women I know a few times, but it sounds like a product of confirmation bias to me. Is there supporting evidence for the claim that if you don't wear a bra you should expect saggier boobs at old age?
Kit Sunde
  • 18,616
  • 12
  • 94
  • 127
39
votes
1 answer

Does the sound of water make one want to pee?

I've known it like forever, I think I was told so since I was a kid. But how true it actually is? I clearly can't see what's the connection between the sound of water and a natural need. From my own experience I'd say that sometimes it works, and…
Ilya Saunkin
  • 799
  • 1
  • 7
  • 12
30
votes
1 answer

Do you use only 14 muscles to smile but 43 to frown?

I have heard this claim many times You use 14 muscles to smile and 43 to frown But I have never seen any actual proof of this and always assumed it was just one of those midwest folksy sayings. Is there any truth too it?
Chad
  • 9,119
  • 6
  • 49
  • 96
29
votes
1 answer

Do women who live together get synchronized menstrual cycles?

I found a Wikipedia article on Menstrual synchrony, which claims: Menstrual synchrony, also known as the McClintock Effect, or the Wellesley Effect [1] is a phenomenon reported in 1971 wherein the menstrual cycles of women who lived together (such…
David Tarandek
  • 485
  • 3
  • 5
21
votes
1 answer

Do monkey bars make you taller?

My mom -- a doctor -- and my relatives seem to think that hanging off monkey bars make you taller as it "stretches" your spine. I seriously doubt if this is true, unless you hang off monkey bars 24/7. (Literally.) Is there any proof?
Mateen Ulhaq
  • 942
  • 8
  • 24
18
votes
2 answers

Any validity to palmistry?

Unlike fortune-telling techniques, palmistry (or palm reading) has a potential connection with reality. Are there any studies that relate any personality traits to shapes of the hand, or lines?
David Thornley
  • 7,906
  • 3
  • 24
  • 24
18
votes
1 answer

Does the human appendix have a purpose, or is it more of an evolutionary leftover?

The "classic" explanation I was always taught at school for the appendix was that it probably once had a purpose and may have assisted with the digestion of cellulose, but is now just a redundant feature. However, some sources now seem to imply it…
berry120
  • 561
  • 4
  • 15
17
votes
1 answer

Do long married couples look more alike?

Most of the articles to prove this I can find quote a 1987 study which found Couples who originally bore no particular resemblance to each other when first married had, after 25 years of marriage, come to resemble each other, although the…
JoseK
  • 4,050
  • 2
  • 28
  • 34
16
votes
3 answers

Is it possible to stick a nail into your nose?

A friend showed me the following video a few minutes ago. He says that it's real, but I can't believe that actually. What do you think? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7z4h4Mxq_ys The video show some guy hammering a nail into his nose.
LMW-HH
  • 263
  • 2
  • 5
16
votes
1 answer

Is it possible for people over 25 years old to to grow taller?

Human height growth tends to saturate at age of 15 in females and 18-20 in males. But, many claim (i.e. "How to increase your height with easy exercises") that it is possible to increase your height even after the those ages, and even beyond 25. The…
Pankaj Upadhyay
  • 569
  • 1
  • 4
  • 13
16
votes
3 answers

Is there evidence that early humans hunted by running in packs over long distances to wear out their food?

As put forth by Christopher McDougall in the book Born to Run (more recently in a TED talk) and a number of recent articles.
Andy B.
  • 261
  • 1
  • 6
14
votes
2 answers

Is the size of a penis when erect proportional to its size when flaccid?

I've heard this most commonly in that you're either a shower or a grower. For example this site talks about the claim accepting it as true. Is there any proof that a smaller flaccid penis (<10cm) can result in a larger penis when erect, than a penis…
user6327
14
votes
1 answer

Do any stores play "Mosquito" noises that annoy teenagers but cannot be heard by adults?

I've heard (no pun intended) some claims that some storefronts in shopping malls play a noise that sounds like a mosquito, which apparently can't be heard by adults yet drives teenagers nuts. The purpose of this noise is to keep teenagers from…
Tim Reddy
  • 1,137
  • 7
  • 18
14
votes
2 answers

Do taste buds become less sensitive as you get older?

I've heard it explained that your taste buds become duller as you get older and that is why I can now eat things like carrots and mushrooms that I used to think tasted like garbage. Is it true that as you get older your taste buds become duller?
going
  • 18,109
  • 18
  • 88
  • 152
14
votes
0 answers

Can people lift hundreds of pounds or run faster due to adrenaline?

You often hear stories about fathers lifting cars or heavy trees off their sons when an accident happens, but is there any truth to this? Can people suddenly lift more or run faster than they normally can under dire situations? As a runner myself,…
Nick
  • 241
  • 1
  • 2
1
2 3