Freezing
An Suomi Tourist asks
recently while enjoying a holiday in the northern climbs one of the pleasures that I enjoyed was going from a Sauna (at about 40degC) out into a hole in the ice (at just above freezing). Common sense says that this is not good for you yet all the locals still do it. Am I going to die shortly?
February 8th, 2006 at 6:53 pm
Common sense says that, with respect to matters pertaining to your health, always consult qualified medical practitioners. None of CSC team, while replete with qualifications, is medically qualified, and while a strong degree of common sense can help in many cases, it is no use here. That is the best advice I can offer to you.
You may however be interested in this recent review: http://www.psy.psychiatryonline.org/cgi/content/full/44/3/261
February 22nd, 2006 at 3:18 pm
Of course you are going to die soon. Everyone is. The earth is around 4.5 billion years old. Since ’soon’ is a relative term you are indeed going to die soon in a geological sense. If we look at other relatives senses we can see that you will also die soon in a mammalian sense (earliest mammals 120 millions years ago), a human species sense (between 3 million and 30 000 years old), in a British Isles sense (10 000 years as an island), and in a Scottish sense (Scots and Picts first united in 843 AD). In terms of normal human lifespan, how on earth would we know? Common Sense dictates that one cannot predict the future with any degree of accuracy. However it can give indications. For example, are you fat and unfit? If so you are likely to die soon if you continue to indulge in such activities due to heart problems.