Homeostasis at work to reduce the temperature of the body wrapped in cling wrap
Aim:
This experiment is to see if cling wrap around a person’s body causes overheating due to it not being able to produce sweat.
Hypothesis:
The body temperature will increase due to the body not being able to produce sweat due to the cling wrap.
Equipment:
- Cling wrap
- Thermometer (for human)
- Thermometer (for outside temperature)
- Scissors
- Clock (to know the time of day and to measure how long the thermometer is in the mouth)
- Hose
- Pad and paper to record results.
Method:
1. Know and have all the safety recursions ready
2. Record the initial body temperature of the subject by placing the thermometer into the persons mouth, under the tongue, for 2-3 minutes then take it out to record the temperature shown.
3. Do a control exercise by jogging for at least 5 minutes for the body temperature to increase and then record the temperature.
4. Wrap the subject in cling wrap but do NOT go near the face, then after 5 minutes record the temperature.
5. Once again to 5 minutes of running then record the temperature.
6. Repeat this process if conducting the experiment on more than one person, this should be done to provide a more accurate result.
2. Record the initial body temperature of the subject by placing the thermometer into the persons mouth, under the tongue, for 2-3 minutes then take it out to record the temperature shown.
3. Do a control exercise by jogging for at least 5 minutes for the body temperature to increase and then record the temperature.
4. Wrap the subject in cling wrap but do NOT go near the face, then after 5 minutes record the temperature.
5. Once again to 5 minutes of running then record the temperature.
6. Repeat this process if conducting the experiment on more than one person, this should be done to provide a more accurate result.
Risk Assessment:
This experiment is mildly dangerous because the cling wrap may cause the body to overheat, especially if the subject is unwell and their metabolic processes are not functioning at optimal rate. To prevent any injury:
-conduct this experiment with people of optimal health (eg, No sick, elderly, pregnant woman).
- conduct in the afternoon or morning, not midday where the temperature is warmer.
-have one or two helpers to assist the experiment and help in an emergency.
-have scissors ready at hand to cut subject free in a emergency.
-have a hose ready in case of an emergency to cool subject down if plastic is difficult to remove.
-conduct this experiment with people of optimal health (eg, No sick, elderly, pregnant woman).
- conduct in the afternoon or morning, not midday where the temperature is warmer.
-have one or two helpers to assist the experiment and help in an emergency.
-have scissors ready at hand to cut subject free in a emergency.
-have a hose ready in case of an emergency to cool subject down if plastic is difficult to remove.
Data:
Evaluation:
The time when each of the experiments was conducted is just to show that this was done in the afternoon when the temperature is not as high, this is also shown by the outside temperature going from 34 °C to 33 °C over a hour as the sun was descending. Test subject one, Natalie age 17, did not have much change of temperature from the control and then having the cling wrap on, only 0.15 of an increase. Test subject number two, Phoebe age 22, had a bit higher increase but it was still only and of 0.25 from the control to the cling wrap. When Natalie did the control exercise she received a temperature of 37.15°C and then when she did the exercise with the cling wrap her body temperature decrease to 36.8°C. This is a decrease of 0.35 and though that is not very much is not expected because when she did the control exercise her body increase by 0.05°C, meaning it basically stayed the same, so the clip wrap exercise was expected to stay the same or increase minimally. From cling wrap to cling wrap with exercise Phoebe only increase an 0.05°C also.
Justification:
After doing exercise with the cling wrap on the side effects for test subject one was hot and exhausted, red skin all over body but especially in the hands, and most noticeable was that large quantity of sweat all over the body and underneath the cling wrap.
Test subject number two also was exhausted from the exercise and the heat, but had less redness over the body except for chest and palms of the hands. This subject also had sweat but not as much as test subject number one.
A logical reason why both subjects experience exhaustion after the exercise was because running is strenuous at the best of time, especially not with plastic covering the body. They were both hot probably because the cling wrap was preventing the wind to cool the skin down, due to the process of convection. The reason why both of the subjects experienced reddening of the skin is due to the process of vasodilatation which is the blood going to the surface of the skin to release heat. Both subject sweat because this is another process of cooling the body down, because the water molecules takes the heat out of the body. A reason why the effects were not exactly the same for both subjects is probably because their bodies are different, they are of different ages, and they have different lifestyle factors. Subject number two has a healthier lifestyle than number one because she eats healthier foods and exercises frequently. Subject number one never does exercise and so her body is not used to the running and heat and so produced more sweat and had more vasodilatation than subject number one.
Considering this information, a conclusion which can be made about the results of the experiment is that because test subject number two’s, Phoebe, body temperature only increased by 0.05°C and test subject number one’s, Natalie, decrease in temperature, homeostasis is inevitably working because it is reducing the heat of the body and is either successful in cooling it or able to keep it the same, such as what thermoregulation did for Phoebe and Natalie. It does this by using the positive and negative feedback loop because the skin receptors tells the hypothalamus that it is too hot and then the effector lowered the temperature until it was told to stop by the hypothalamus. This was why Natalie’s temperature was lower after exercising.
Test subject number two also was exhausted from the exercise and the heat, but had less redness over the body except for chest and palms of the hands. This subject also had sweat but not as much as test subject number one.
A logical reason why both subjects experience exhaustion after the exercise was because running is strenuous at the best of time, especially not with plastic covering the body. They were both hot probably because the cling wrap was preventing the wind to cool the skin down, due to the process of convection. The reason why both of the subjects experienced reddening of the skin is due to the process of vasodilatation which is the blood going to the surface of the skin to release heat. Both subject sweat because this is another process of cooling the body down, because the water molecules takes the heat out of the body. A reason why the effects were not exactly the same for both subjects is probably because their bodies are different, they are of different ages, and they have different lifestyle factors. Subject number two has a healthier lifestyle than number one because she eats healthier foods and exercises frequently. Subject number one never does exercise and so her body is not used to the running and heat and so produced more sweat and had more vasodilatation than subject number one.
Considering this information, a conclusion which can be made about the results of the experiment is that because test subject number two’s, Phoebe, body temperature only increased by 0.05°C and test subject number one’s, Natalie, decrease in temperature, homeostasis is inevitably working because it is reducing the heat of the body and is either successful in cooling it or able to keep it the same, such as what thermoregulation did for Phoebe and Natalie. It does this by using the positive and negative feedback loop because the skin receptors tells the hypothalamus that it is too hot and then the effector lowered the temperature until it was told to stop by the hypothalamus. This was why Natalie’s temperature was lower after exercising.
Conclusion:
Although the results were not as intended it was still a successful experiment because it proved homeostasis was at work in controlling the human body. The cling wrap did not stop the body from sweating, which was assumed in the hypothesis, but it also did not over heat because even though the body did become hotter due to the cling wrap it just produced more sweat and made the body vasodilate more. This shows that no matter what the temperature is homeostasis will work to reduce this temperature to a degree comfortable for the metabolic process to continue.