WikiFriday: Hippos, cortisol

 

Hippos

Are most related to... 

whales and dolphins! 

They all share a semiaquatic ancestor, and diverged 55 million years ago. Hippos and whales and dolphins. Something in me feels that everyone should learn this.

Cortisol

Is extremely connected to our blood sugar level, which I learned is tightly regulated in the human body. Side rabbit hole: Apparently the average adult human only has about 4 teaspoons of sugar in all of their blood at a given moment.

Contrary to what social media influencers say, cortisol does not cause inflammation. To the contrary, it prevents inflammation. 

It does, however, lead to osteoporosis.

I learned that you cannot say that cortisol suppresses the immune system. It actually triggers a specific immune response.

That's all I've got for now. As always, thanks, Wikipedia.

Mansions vs democracy

I’ve been thinking about the intangible damage done by bigger homes. They can erode community within the household by drawing people to separate rooms. At the extreme end, when people have private pools and movie theatres, they can completely obliterate social connections, because residents have no reason to go out and use public services.

And then I think of the book with the thesis that democracy relies on unplanned encounters and common experiences. Mansions vs democracy.

Plus, they are hard to clean.