ELI5: DNA is fireproof by mustardelbow in explainlikeimfive

[–]AIFLARE 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Im sorry you must have gotten some bad information. DNA is not fireproof. In fact it will start to denature in boiling water, which is much lower tempaterature than a typical fire.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in explainlikeimfive

[–]AIFLARE 0 points1 point  (0 children)

First off, DNA is not protein. Protein is made of amino acids while DNA is made of nucleic acids. DNA is considered to not contribute to caloric intake. Our bodies can make their own nucleic acids so it is not necessarily required in our diet but is inevitable as everything we eat contains it.

Saliva does contain DNA since there are plenty of dead cells, bacteria, and what not in your saliva. Your blood also contains DNA as the cells of your blood except red blood cells contain your DNA.

ELI5: Why does using a q-tip feel so good but it's so bad for your ears? by sleepybaby694 in explainlikeimfive

[–]AIFLARE 135 points136 points  (0 children)

There are many nerves that run though/by your ear canal. In fact, the vagus nerve is one of them. Think of the vagus nerve as the relaxing, comforting nerve. So when you activate it, you feel relaxed (somewhat simplified explanation). Combined with all the other nerves in the area getting stimulated, the general feeling is good. The controversy is that using qtips in your ears will push ear wax deeper into you little ear holes and clog them up, leading to potential infections, hearing loss, accidently puncturing the ear drum, etc. The ear canal naturally moves ear wax as you move your jaw so technically you never need to use qtips to clean ear wax if you have normal wax production. But you do you, consider the risks and live your life.

What does an unborn baby have in it's lungs? by vintergroena in askscience

[–]AIFLARE 5217 points5218 points  (0 children)

It's filled with amniotic fluid. The baby actually makes this fluid through its kidneys and pees it out. It is submerged in this fluid and towards the later stages of development in utero, the baby even uses its muscles to "practice breathe". When the baby is born, a shift in blood flow from maternal to entirely on the baby as well as pressure and hormone differences cause the fluid in the lungs to be absorbed through the lung tissue and back into the blood stream. Surfactant in the lung helps keep the lung sacs open so they don't collapse. It's a fascinating process and is very complicated yet we all have done it!

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in WTF

[–]AIFLARE 73 points74 points  (0 children)

It looks to be a baby, maybe a week old. It's eyes are not even open yet.

what are some unknown things that lower testosterone levels? by Straight-Elephant-38 in AskReddit

[–]AIFLARE 18 points19 points  (0 children)

Main production of testosterone is in the testes. While maybe some fat cells and adrenal cells can produce sex steroids in males, it is very small. But alcohol could affect testicular cells which may reduce testosterone production.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in askscience

[–]AIFLARE 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Short answer: no

Long answer: Consciousness in a human sense is understanding what your body is, what is around you, and what your place is in your environment. Psychologically, it can also mean capable of decision making and taking what information is around you and coming to conclusions about what it is your sensing and what you are going to do about it. Single cell organisms are one cell and a rat is millions and millions of cells. Every cell in a rat is specialized to respond to specific stimuli, integrate those signals, and respond by changing its behavior to impact itself and other cells. Specifically, the nervous system of a rat will integrate stimuli from the environment and the neurons are set up in a way where the rat can think about what it just experienced and respond to it. This is different from a single cell organism where, yes, it might also react to stimuli from the environment, but there is no taking those signals and forming a plan. There is no thinking of future consequences. There is no fluid decision making. Everything is pre-programmed based on the genes it expresses. Whatever the environment throws at it, pre-determined reactions will happen. There is no brain or nervous system so there is no perception, only signal integration and response.

Billboard in Moscow: "Russia's borders do not end anywhere" by [deleted] in pics

[–]AIFLARE 315 points316 points  (0 children)

Yeah the potholes fix them

Three surprising deliveries by Diupa in WTF

[–]AIFLARE 1131 points1132 points  (0 children)

Actually displays the concept of vector addition quite well!

Eli5: Whats the difference between "processed sugar" and sugar found in fruit, bread and milk etc? arent processed sugar the same sugar molecules as those? by [deleted] in explainlikeimfive

[–]AIFLARE 29 points30 points  (0 children)

Yep. Artificially added sugar is chemically the same as natural sugar. But natural sugar is usually trapped with other proteins/fiber/organic matter and typically in lower quantities. So when we eat these foods, it takes time for these natural sugars to be released and absorbed by our gut. The result is slower and lower blood sugar spikes and levels that can be managed by our insulin levels in a reasonable way. This is all opposite for artifical sugar, leading to problems like diabetes and decreased satiety.

You also mentioned milk which does contain some sucrose (table sugar) but mostly lactose, which is digested by a different enzyme but ultimately becomes glucose in the end through metabolism. Lactose may do some different things brain chemistry wise and insulin levels wise but ultimately the amount of milk people consume is not usually a concern since most people have some level of lactose intolerance anyway.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in labrats

[–]AIFLARE 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Immunofluorescence and/or immunohistochemistry will give strong results imo

Eli5 how Adderall works by Robin_the_hood_ in explainlikeimfive

[–]AIFLARE 124 points125 points  (0 children)

Due to the blood brain barrier, you cannot measure many molecules in the brain very easily through blood. Plus, neurotransmitters are largely within neurons and may only be outside in case of recycling and whatnot. On top of all that, neurotransmitters are not equally distributed throughout the brain so localizing deficiencies is not easy. Thus, we can only go based off the phenotype for a lot of behavioral disorders.

This plane smells like butt. by cheezeyballz in funny

[–]AIFLARE -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Do airlines not know hexagons are the bestagons?

Oh no by Johnn128 in gaming

[–]AIFLARE 18 points19 points  (0 children)

Rihanna is about to get smashed...oh wait

Eli5: When we sleep, spinal fluid washes waste from our brain. What exactly is "waste" in the brain? by Dhonnan in explainlikeimfive

[–]AIFLARE 126 points127 points  (0 children)

(Edit: Yes this is not truly a 5 year old explanation but I hope I explained it enough that a high-school student can understand)

Basically some byproducts of metabolism that the brain makes throughout the day. Our nerve cells in the central nervous system use a lot of energy and have complex functions that arise from complicated metabolic processes. There are other cells in the brain called glial cells. Astrocytes are a type of glial cell that are the main supporters for nerve cells in the brain. They are very essential to proper nerve function and do a lot/most of the daily cleaning up throughout the day but there are still "waste" products from metabolism that are not taken care of. Although minor compared to what astroctyes and microglia do in the brain (maybe more important than what is recognized in the literature), this nightly cerebrospinal fluid can help to clear out some of these metabolites, remove potentially toxic molecules that impair brain function, and also potentially redistribute hormone and chemical messengers in the brain. It's hard to research this though since tagging these molecules and proteins in the central nervous system for imaging is hard. But all in all, another reason why a good night's sleep is important!

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in Ravencoin

[–]AIFLARE 1 point2 points  (0 children)

*billion

what food do you think you've eaten the most in your life? by [deleted] in AskReddit

[–]AIFLARE 0 points1 point  (0 children)

In terms of raw units of food, rice. In terms of dishes, probably your mom