All categories - 17 June 2006

1. If your throat tickles, scratch your ear.

When you were 9, playing your armpit was a cool trick. Now, as an adult, you can still appreciate a good body-based feat, but you're more discriminating. Take that tickle in your throat; it's not worth gagging over. Here's a better way to scratch your itch: "When the nerves in the ear are stimulated, it creates a reflex in the throat that can cause a muscle spasm," says Scott Schaffer, M.D., president of an ear, nose and throat specialty center in Gibbsboro , New Jersey . "This spasm relieves the tickle."

2. Experience supersonic hearing!

If you're stuck chatting up a mumbler at a cocktail party, lean in with your right ear. It's better than your left at following the rapid rhythms of speech, according to researchers at the UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine. If, on the other hand, you're trying to identify that song playing softly in the elevator, turn your left ear toward the sound. The left ear is better at picking up music tones.

3. Overcome your most primal urge!

Need to pee? No bathroom nearby? Fantasize about Jessica Simpson. Thinking about sex preoccupies your brain, so you won't feel as much discomfort, says Larry Lipshultz, M.D., chief of male reproductive medicine at the Baylor College of Medicine. For best results, try Simpson's "These Boots Are Made for Walking" video.

4. Feel no pain!

German researchers have discovered that coughing during an injection can lessen the pain of the needle stick. According to Taras Usichenko, author of a study on the phenomenon, the trick causes a sudden, temporary rise in pressure in the chest and spinal canal, inhibiting the pain-conducting structures of the spinal cord.

5. Clear your stuffed nose!

Forget Sudafed. An easier, quicker, and cheaper way to relieve sinus pressure is by alternately thrusting your tongue against the roof of your mouth, then pressing between your eyebrows with one finger. This causes the vomer bone, which runs through the nasal passages to the mouth, to rock back and forth, says Lisa DeStefano, D.O., an assistant professor at the Michigan State University college of osteopathic medicine. The motion loosens congestion; after 20 seconds, you'll feel your sinuses start to drain.

6. Fight fire without water!

Worried those wings will repeat on you tonight? "Sleep on your left side," says Anthony A. Star-poli, M.D., a New York City gastroenterologist and assistant professor of medicine at New York Medical College . Studies have shown that patients who sleep on their left sides are less likely to suffer from acid reflux. The esophagus and stomach connect at an angle. When you sleep on your right, the stomach is higher than the esophagus, allowing food and stomach acid to slide up your throat. When you're on your left, the stomach is lower than the esophagus, so gravity's in your favor.

7. Cure your toothache without opening your mouth!

Just rub ice on the back of your hand, on the V-shaped webbed area between your thumb and index finger. A Canadian study found that this technique reduces toothache pain by as much as 50 percent compared with using no ice. The nerve pathways at the base of that V stimulate an area of the brain that blocks pain signals from the face and hands.

8. Make burns disappear!

When you accidentally singe your finger on the stove, clean the skin and apply light pressure with the finger pads of your unmarred hand. Ice will relieve your pain more quickly, Dr. DeStefano says, but since the natural method brings the burned skin back to a normal temperature, the skin is less likely to blister.

9. Stop the world from spinning!

One too many drinks left you dizzy? Put your hand on something stable. The part of your ear responsible for balance—the cupula—floats in a fluid of the same density as blood. "As alcohol dilutes blood in the cupula, the cupula becomes less dense and rises," says Dr. Schaffer. This confuses your brain. The tactile input from a stable object gives the brain a second opinion, and you feel more in balance. Because the nerves in the hand are so sensitive, this works better than the conventional foot-on-the-floor wisdom.

10. Unstitch your side!

If you're like most people, when you run, you exhale as your right foot hits the ground. This puts downward pressure on your liver (which lives on your right side), which then tugs at the diaphragm and creates a side stitch, according to The Doctors Book of Home Remedies for Men. The fix: Exhale as your left foot strikes the ground.

11. Stanch blood with a single finger!

Pinching your nose and leaning back is a great way to stop a nosebleed—if you don't mind choking on your own O positive. A more civil approach: Put some cotton on your upper gums—just behind that small dent below your nose—and press against it, hard. "Most bleeds come from the front of the septum, the cartilage wall that divides the nose," says Peter Desmarais, M.D., an ear, nose, and throat specialist at Entabeni Hospital , in Durban , South Africa . "Pressing here helps stop them."

12. Make your heart stand still!

Trying to quell first-date jitters? Blow on your thumb. The vagus nerve, which governs heart rate, can be controlled through breathing, says Ben Abo, an emergency medical-services specialist at the University of Pittsburgh . It'll get your heart rate back to normal.

13. Thaw your brain!

Too much Chipwich too fast will freeze the brains of lesser men. As for you, press your tongue flat against the roof of your mouth, covering as much as you can. "Since the nerves in the roof of your mouth get extremely cold, your body thinks your brain is freezing, too," says Abo. "In compensating, it overheats, causing an ice-cream headache." The more pressure you apply to the roof of your mouth, the faster your headache will subside.

14. Prevent near-sightedness!

Poor distance vision is rarely caused by genetics, says Anne Barber, O.D., an optometrist in Tacoma , Washington . "It's usually caused by near-point stress." In other words, staring at your computer screen for too long. So flex your way to 20/20 vision. Every few hours during the day, close your eyes, tense your body, take a deep breath, and, after a few seconds, release your breath and muscles at the same time. Tightening and releasing muscles such as the biceps and glutes can trick involuntary muscles—like the eyes—into relaxing as well.

15. Wake the dead!

If your hand falls asleep while you're driving or sitting in an odd position, rock your head from side to side. It'll painlessly banish your pins and needles in less than a minute, says Dr. DeStefano. A tingly hand or arm is often the result of compression in the bundle of nerves in your neck; loosening your neck muscles releases the pressure. Compressed nerves lower in the body govern the feet, so don't let your sleeping dogs lie. Stand up and walk around.

16. Impress your friends!

Next time you're at a party, try this trick: Have a person hold one arm straight out to the side, palm down, and instruct him to maintain this position. Then place two fingers on his wrist and push down. He'll resist. Now have him put one foot on a surface that's a half inch higher (a few magazines) and repeat. This time his arm will fold like a house of cards. By misaligning his hips, you've offset his spine, says Rachel Cosgrove, C.S.C.S., co-owner of Results Fitness, in Santa Clarita , California . Your brain senses that the spine is vulnerable, so it shuts down the body's ability to resist.

17. Breathe underwater!

If you're dying to retrieve that quarter from the bottom of the pool, take several short breaths first—essentially, hyperventilate. When you're underwater, it's not a lack of oxygen that makes you desperate for a breath; it's the buildup of carbon dioxide, which makes your blood acidic, which signals your brain that somethin' ain't right. "When you hyperventilate, the influx of oxygen lowers blood acidity," says Jonathan Armbruster, Ph.D., an associate professor of biology at Auburn University . "This tricks your brain into thinking it has more oxygen." It'll buy you up to 10 seconds.

18. Read minds!

Your own! "If you're giving a speech the next day, review it before falling asleep," says Candi Heimgartner, an instructor of biological sciences at the University of Idaho . Since most memory consolidation happens during sleep, anything you read right before bed is more likely to be encoded as long-term memory.

2006-06-17 02:08:20 · 4 answers · asked by jackwhite 2 in Other - Health

Global positioning system (GPS)can help monitor the movement of any type of vechicle, can the same be used to monitor transit mixer carrying ready mix concrete? Is there any other usage of fixing GPS benefits.?

2006-06-17 02:08:19 · 3 answers · asked by Anonymous in Pondicherry

a freeze was put on my e-mails because I didn't order the Norton Antiviral package again. I want to delete it from my system because I have another antiviral package. Please help.

2006-06-17 02:08:13 · 3 answers · asked by Boon L 1 in Security

2006-06-17 02:08:05 · 9 answers · asked by Just IN 2 in Lorraine

My mom and my step-father not going well. We are Chinese, my step-father are American. They were married five years, and last year we was came to US. We live together. My step-father always recording，when we make a phone call someone. And this time he said I took her important fax paper, but I am not...
I want to rent apartment, and move outside. My mother wants go with me. But if we move, my step-father maybe sues us. So it is any thing we did wrong and against the low?

2006-06-17 02:08:02 · 6 answers · asked by i..t..a 1 in Law & Ethics

Someone is texting me and leaving their number but I dont know who it is.How can I find out without calling them back?

2006-06-17 02:07:54 · 9 answers · asked by rocnoi 2 in Other - Family & Relationships

2006-06-17 02:07:44 · 16 answers · asked by father of two kids 1 in Orlando

2006-06-17 02:07:22 · 11 answers · asked by tiger 1 in Adolescent

He his young please keep your answers clean and nice thankyou.
He would like to know if it is possible to make a flying machine that all you have to do is push a button and it will fly?

2006-06-17 02:07:05 · 11 answers · asked by Anonymous in Other - Education

as they will not enter the kingdom of heaven'

Who decides who is ugly or beautiful, why should ugly people not have rights? Who says Jesus was beautiful with that beard and all?

2006-06-17 02:06:52 · 17 answers · asked by que pasa 2 in Religion & Spirituality

Elephant and ant were great friends.But they had a problem,both loved same girl.Atlast that girl dithced both of them.So they decided to suicide together.They went to the bridge,both stood on the edge of the bridge.First elephant jumped into river.now it ant's turn.He was about to jump,at that time he remembered that!!!.WHAT DID HE REMEMBER?

2006-06-17 02:06:36 · 16 answers · asked by plz_answer_me 2 in Jokes & Riddles

2006-06-17 02:06:26 · 7 answers · asked by Anonymous in Other - Family & Relationships

I'm 53 and decided to take on a yrlng appy filly she's sweet and gentle halter broke I've started with just leading and walking and gtting her to know her name and me is lunging a must

2006-06-17 02:06:19 · 6 answers · asked by Anonymous in Other - Pets

A company conducted a job fair in our city and i partecipated..Luckily i have passed the initial ,the exam and final interview...the interviewer told me that i should compile some requirements and wait for their call after 1 month...we also shake hands and he also told me congrats.....my question is that am I really accepted or thier is still a chance that the interviewer just say those thing so it will not make me feel bad and dissapointed.....what should i do? please help ....

2006-06-17 02:06:12 · 8 answers · asked by learning 1 in Other - News & Events

1god, 1son ,1 holyspirit. ....alla and so on......1 world...1religion....... no y ELIJAH comes

2006-06-17 02:06:02 · 2 answers · asked by Anonymous in Religion & Spirituality

Spliffs ain't gonna do nothing good for you..

They only tarnish ya teeth and soil ya breath..And it ain't even sexy..

Not at all...

Don not smoke..

ever...

Don't...

Please..

2006-06-17 02:05:47 · 24 answers · asked by DaJaw Breaka 1 in Singles & Dating

http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/D78B8615-917F-4A21-8E22-3C99E6E36D18.htm

Saturday 17 June 2006, 2:55 Makka Time, 23:55 GMT

An anti-Taliban offensive under way involves 10,000 personnel

At least 45 suspected Taliban have been killed in clashes in Afghanistan as the US-led multinational force continues its largest offensive since 2001.

islam plus american democratics to love only peace. no to american mr president bush and peoples war lover army killer(praise be to allah)

2006-06-17 02:05:29 · 12 answers · asked by NONAME 1 in Other - Politics & Government

Look at these facts: (a) Jesus said that the meek shall inherit the earth (Mat 5:5); (b) Jesus said that no man--not even Moses and Abraham went to heaven according to John 3:13 (c) Lazarus and several others were resurrected on earth--not in heaven.

Yet, we believe that those who are saved will go to heaven.
These facts amazes me. What about you?

2006-06-17 02:05:20 · 10 answers · asked by Egyptian Prince 4 in Religion & Spirituality

2006-06-17 02:05:13 · 10 answers · asked by Anonymous in Religion & Spirituality

been to dealer and cant find intermitent problem . 2002 ford exploeror ,v6 23,000 miles. hardly used. at 40 mph cuts off. if on beltway and going fast the inertia it restarts itself but at 40 i have t pull over sometimes to restart it . this is a once in 5 trips this happens .this is the pickup style .exploer and told it might be a late 2001 modle not 2002. have searched web here talk of fuel pump relay or pump.dose not happen went taken to dealer so they dont no what to do.

2006-06-17 02:05:04 · 2 answers · asked by herowp 1 in Maintenance & Repairs

A company conducted a job fair in our city and i partecipated..Luckily i have passed the initial ,the exam and final interview...the interviewer told me that i should compile some requirements and wait for their call after 1 month...we also shake hands and he also told me congrats.....my question is that am I really accepted or thier is still a chance that the interviewer just say those thing so it will not make me feel bad and dissapointed.....what should i do? please help ....

2006-06-17 02:05:03 · 12 answers · asked by learning 1 in Singles & Dating

If so, then why do scientists date fossils by the rocks nearby, but date rocks by the fossils nearby?? Isn't this "circular reasoning"?

2006-06-17 02:04:46 · 6 answers · asked by garayfive 2 in Earth Sciences & Geology

TELL SOMEONE UR BORED, SITTING IN THE HOUSE WATCHING TV, THEY INVITE U 2 THERE HOUSE 2 SO THE SAME? NOW WHY WOULD I WANT TO GO TO UR HOUSE TO DO THING I'M ALREADY DOING?

2006-06-17 02:04:36 · 8 answers · asked by Miss K 1 in Friends

I am trying to lose weight and I'm not much of a meat eater. Sometimes I might eat some chicken or salmon but mostly it's this:
Fruit
Vegetables
Non fat dairy
Low fat cheese
wholegrain bread and pasta
oats
nuts and seeds

Does this sound like a good diet for weightloss and general heatlth?

2006-06-17 02:04:32 · 18 answers · asked by Lotte T 3 in Vegetarian & Vegan

2006-06-17 02:04:28 · 6 answers · asked by R. M. 1 in FIFA World Cup (TM)

They're both really good teams and I do support Argentina, but I just wanted other opinions...

2006-06-17 02:04:21 · 14 answers · asked by misledyouth_18 2 in FIFA World Cup (TM)

this is probably not a question

2006-06-17 02:04:15 · 11 answers · asked by Anonymous in Singles & Dating

2006-06-17 02:04:14 · 25 answers · asked by robbie 2 in Friends

2006-06-17 02:03:53 · 8 answers · asked by miss.genius 1 in Other - Business & Finance