COirtig
Let's Talk Science: Black
holes, allergies, and hiccups

, Chitwan Khosla
- Features Editor

' features
@theotherpress.ca

 

Science is about questions and
looking for their answers. If
Newton hadn’t wondered and
looked for why the apple fell

to Earth instead of going up,

we might have never found out
about gravity. So, like Newton,
this section is a quest to find
answers in the field of science,
logic, and theories. If you have a
question about science that you'd
like answered, send it to Chitwan
at features@theotherpress.ca

hat are black holes?

NASA's official website
describes a black hole as “a
place in space where gravity
pulls so much that even light
cannot get out. The gravity is so
strong because matter has been
squeezed into a tiny space.”

Black holes remained a

mystery for ages, as they are
invisible since no light escapes
them. We can only see the effects
of a black hole when objects

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Contact: Chitwan Khosla, Features Editor
M4 features@theotherpress.ca

: fall into it due to the strong

: gravitational pull. There are

: two known types of black holes:
: stellar and supermassive. The

: mass of a stellar black hole can

: be up to 20 times larger than

: that of a sun. Supermassive

: black holes are huge black holes
: with masses sometimes more

: than that of a million suns put

: together. “Sagittarius A” is a

: supermassive black hole found

: in the centre of our galaxy Milky
: Way.

Black holes have an outer,

: inner, and a singularity region.

: The event horizon is the

: outermost region of a black hole

: where everything falls into it.

: Once an object crosses the event

: horizon, it can’t escape the black
: hole. Then the object reaches the
: concentrated region of the black

: hole called singularity. No one

: knows for sure what happens

: at that point. What little

: information we have about black
: holes is mostly just composed of

theories or myths.

Scientists are investigating

: extensively as these findings can
: reveal crucial secrets about the
: formation of our universe. The

: theories of relativity by Einstein
: and quantum mechanics vary
on many aspects about black

: holes. Space.com reports that

: according to Albert Einstein, an
: astronaut would reach the event
: horizon and get pulled apart

: before reaching the singularity.

: Onthe flip side, physicists

: supporting quantum mechanics
: theory believe that the astronaut
: would not reach singularity

: or find the event horizon, but

: rather would get destroyed on

: just entering the black hole.

: Why do allergies occur?

: Allergies occur when the human
: immune system reacts toa

: foreign particle entering the

: body. This can be a harmful ora
: harmless particle, which triggers :
: the body to react severely to

: get rid of it. Our bodies have

: Immunoglobulin E antibodies

: (IgE), which produce histamine.
: Histamine causes inflammation,
: fever, and itching if produced in
very large amounts. People with
: allergies have higher amounts of
: IgE in their bodies which in turn
: increases the level of histamine

: production, leading toa reaction :

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And more!

: toa specific foreign particle
: which is called the allergen.

One can become allergic

: to anallergen at any point in

: their lives. Usually this occurs

: when one’s immunity is weak,

: generally while sick. Another

: reason is exposure to allergens.
: The body gets exposed to

: allergens numerous times

: and the immune system starts
: preparing antibodies for it.

: Over the course of time, enough
: antibodies are prepared which
: can attack the allergen.

Allergies are sometimes

skin patch tests are conducted

moderate allergies. Treatments

ra

. an

Image from Thinkstock

: and precautions include

: antihistamines, decongestants,

: allergy shots, dehumidifiers, and
: others.

: What are hiccups?

: Seldom occurring, yet very

: bothersome, hiccups are called
: synchronous diaphragmatic

: flutter (SDF) or singultus

: in medical terms, as noted

: by MedicalNewsToday.com.

: Hiccups occur when our

: diaphragm gets irritated. The

: diaphragm is a muscular sheet
: : that assists in breathing. On

: hard to diagnose because there is :
: almost an infinite list of possible :
: allergens causing antibodies to
: react. Different types of tests like
: skin prick tests, blood tests, and

being irritated, the movements
of a diaphragm are not very

: smooth and can cause jerks.

This in turn causes your voice

: chords to collide and cause

: the hiccup. Eating or drinking
: to determine the allergy-causing :
: allergen. Allergies need to be

: taken very seriously because

: they can prove fatal in some

: cases, such as medication

: complications. Ideally, everyone
: should get an allergy test done

: to find out if they are allergic

: to anything. Physicians and

: doctors can help treat minor or

too quickly or too much can

: cause hiccups. Hiccups are not

: harmful to us and rarely last

: longer than couple of minutes.

: Drinking water, inhaling deeply,
: or gargling with iced water

: are some of the remedies for

: hiccups suggested by National

: Health Service (UK). The longest
: continuous hiccup world record

: is 68 years!