The Effects of Temperature on the Human Condition.

Hello everyone.

This was a thread I wanted to do a while back, but today reminded me why I should write it.

It was a scorcher today. It was at least 95 degrees PLUS humidity. Everyone I was with today was extremely irritable, including me. It was a hellhole...

It is now evening time, and everyone has settled down. It really did have quite an effect on all of us.

On the other side of the coin, about 6 months ago, I was in an extremely cold environment, and it kind of had the opposite effect on people. Everyone would kind of just keep to themselves and huddle up with layers of clothes. It gets really lonely.

So, what are your thoughts on this phenomenon?

-Sol

death is cold. people don't like death.


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I was in a traffic jam last week.

Boiling temps, sitting atop engines.


Yes, people were acting like asswholes. (Whole asses)


I found myself trying to succumb to the masses' road rage.

I summoned my will and said "# it". And it took 40 mins to move 3 miles.

And then, someone let me cut in front of them before my exit. A pure gesture of good will.

My faith in humanity was restored.





[edit on 8-8-2010 by __rich__]

The old addage that everything in moderation comes to mind.

But I definitely see a link between heat and madness. as well you exuberance.

Most of your tropical countries have a reputation for having "sunny" personalities. Or Fiery temperaments. which may be the case. As sunshine does lift the mood.

But I think that when it is just heat, and especially humidity. You begin to gown down the other side of the bell curve, and this just get a bit crazy.

Too much and you're outside of the comfort zone, and then the irrational thinking comes in to play.

Look at Russia at the moment. thousands dead just because they were trying to cool off, Got drunk and went for a swim in the Moscow river!

I think Terry Pratchett has it right with the Troll. they geta BIT FICK when it's warm!

i think the same can be said for humans, Especially those not used to it.

reply to post by SolarE-Souljah


I'm the opposite of typical nature, I bloom in the winter and die in the summer.

I live in North Florida and the summer is 95 with 70 dew point, and if you know weather then you know that is HOT! I find that I start to get quite irritable and annoyed when the thermostat reaches about 78. So as you know any months outside of Dec-Feb are bad months for me, obviously a grumpy person.

I love it cold! I find that about 55 with a light breeze and cloudy is perfect for me. But I can happily handle weather down to 10 outside. I am very alive, talkative and happy in the winter months!

Autumn is my favorite season because it is the buildup to knowing the cold season is coming as the temperatures begin to drop. I really like build up to things, I actually think I prefer the build up to the actual thing.

In southern California there is a situation called the Santa ana winds. Not sure of the spelling. Santa....... Maybe it's Santaana, something like that. The winds blow from the east, from the desert, and it gets really, really hot. People get irritable.

The Native Americans who lived in that area used to travel to the beaches during this activity, to sit in the water and cool off. Also to fish.

They understood those hot winds effected them adversely and found a way to avoid all the irritableness and ugly attitudes that could cause much troubles for everyone.

I am in the CA foothills....This summer it was around 102 IN THE SHADE. You would think that with all the big trees around would make a difference, but instead, it feels really muggy/steamy.

We humans are very fragile. Last year, We had a rough heat wave, we have many chickens. During the hottest part of the day, everyone was slow and trying to cool in running/misting water. But the real danger was when it cooled down at night.....the next morning, about 20 birds were dead.
So, during really hot days, find the best way to keep your body temp as comfortable as possible, try to avoid beeing outdoors especially in the hotter direct sunlight, and take it easy (dont exert yourselves too much).

Heat could kill a person, and in sometimes (worse) cases, make someone have a stroke...I say worse, because I have been around quite a few folks who wished rather have died than to be so messed up by stroke---one person couldnt comment because her mentality was not right (or normal anymore).

I absolutely despise temperatures above 22 degrees Celsius or about 72 degrees Fahrenheit.

I actually prefer 15 degrees Celsius which should be around 65 degrees Fahrenheit.

I do not mind if it gets colder as it is easier to get warm then it is to cool of.

I do prefer the sun to accompany the cold and a cold winters day with a clear sky I love.
Even if it is freezing 10 degrees, I don't care.

Maybe in a past life I used to be an Inuit or something. I also have a layer of blubber to keep me warm... so.

Why does heat have to be perceived as hot? Why does heat, or hot have to be uncomfortable?

Lines.

[edit on 8-8-2010 by onequestion]

Here is some people who are testing your theory OP,its to stupid for its own thread so i will put it here if you dont mind.World Sauna championships?
www.sbs.com.au...
Saturday's contest, in which participants were asked to withstand a sweltering 110 degrees Celsius for as long as possible.

Personally i like the heat and anything below 20 C is getting to cold.32C is a nice temperature

The world sauna championships had to be cancelled with one dead and the other collapsed.

Living in the North of England I never see much more than cold, wind and rain. Strangely though I myself prefer the summer, but feel more alive in the winter!?


To the OP:

I think that the sunlight effects us more than we realise, Physically and Psychologically.

Physically releasing different hormones and effecting the lymphic system.

Psycologically making us feel safer and more vital.

These two are linked however, and I think you can make of it what you want. You can make the heat annoying to yourself, or make it pleasing.

The trick is in the mind!

reply to post by SolarE-Souljah


Wow I just had a conversation about this. I recently visited New Orleans where the heat index was 110 and the air felt like boiling water. While down there, I noticed how different and undeveloped it was compared to up north where I am from. I noticed how people generally were content with simpler lifestyles and less complex thoughts. Someone else argued this was because the weather allowed them to not have to worry about losing crops throughout the winter season and that since the weather was more of a constant it didn't force them to have to think in such a dualistic nature, which is what aides in creating intelligence. I agreed, but my theory was that the heat made it hard to think clearly. Even though we learn that the hotter something gets the faster its molecules move, I argued our brain was not equipt to work at an optimized level in that hot of heat. I noticed it within myself, it was hard to remain in my disciplined Buddhist thoughts, but that also might of been because that city parties 24 hours a day.

I don’t know if this is what your talking about but you should read about Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), just Google it.

My childhood was in a cold place. Now I live in a very, very freaking hot place. To be brutally honest it drives me close to B+*$#* insane, even after many years. I get very cranky and irratable in the summer every year and it weighs on me physically...it is harder to move around, go outside, or do just about *anything.* Personally I would love to return to the world of stark, austere pines and widswept bone-chilling medows but we can't have everything in life that we wan't, can we? Fortunately I have other compensations.

At any rate, my impression is that people deal best with the climate they grew up in. Seems people lock that down pretty fast and its hard to get rid of later in life. For fellow north-country people now living in the sweltering lands: one of the best pieces of advice is GO SLOW. Force yourself to slow down in everything you do, and it becomes bearable.

I only mentioned the two extremes.

When it is a nice sunny day that is not sweltering and humid, it can actually be quite nice.

Same can be said for a day with a slight and nice chill in the air. Those are both tolerable.

But I think we all the know the extremes can affect us quite drastically.

-Sol