Talk:Thermoregulation

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This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition, now in the public domain.

I merged thermoregulate into this article here and it still needs work. Because of the structure of the original articles it was easy to split up the article into: mechanisms of regulation and then by types of animals, i.e.:

  • Physiological regulation
    • Ectotherms
    • Endotherms
  • Behavioral regulation
    • Types of
    • Ectotherm
    • Endotherm

Although I suspect that it might be best to divide the article by organism type (endotherm, ectotherm) and then discuss the mechanisms for each, i.e.

  • Ectotherms
    • Physiological regulation
    • Behavioral regulation
  • Endotherms
    • Physiological regulation
    • Behavioral regulation

However, given the ways it's currently written it would be some work to this, but it would probably improve readability. Any takers?--Lexor 11:01, 25 Nov 2003 (UTC)

Contents

[edit] possible error

The phrase "Cestus having lowest death temperature and least amount of solids in its body" seems like there must be something wrong with it, but I'm not sure. The only article up for "cestus" is that of the brass-knuckle like object used in the classical world. I'm not sure what the other meaning is, but perhaps it should either be stated here, changed if incorrect, or it should have an article about it.

The provided (inline) reference checks out: http://www.google.com/search?&q=H.M.%20Vernon%20cestus


[edit] Metabolism

I came looking for info on whether lowering the thermostat (e.g. at night) would result in weight loss / increase metabolism. Article implies it may, but it's unclear - perhaps it's mechanisms other than metabolism changes that result in maintaining core temperature. I wonder if the topic has been studied. Is this another side effect (along with saving money, the environment, etc.)? -Anon

[edit] vandalism

Someone vandalized this page, Oct, 11, 2005. I'll revise it. Adam850 00:00, 12 October 2005 (UTC)

[edit] Teleological Evolution

The phrase "high in the scale of evolution" in referenece to warm-bloods such as mammals and birds is rather grating. All current animals have the same amount of evolutionary time under their belt. This is like the common misconception that "humans evolved from monkeys" rather than sharing common ancestors. 68.35.154.196 18:41, 8 July 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Clarification Needed

In the section 'Limits compatible with life' the phrase "but no one can survive a temperature of 45°C (113°F)" should be clarified such that it is apparent that this is the 'internal body temperature' (see Wikipedia article: Heat_stroke) Begaddy 02:51, 11 August 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Question

"If the body is unable to maintain a normal temperature and it increases significantly above normal, a condition known as hyperthermia occurs."

Isn't this condition known as heat stroke, not hypothermia? - note the difference in the terms "hypERthermia" and "hypOthermia". They are totally different.


ANSWER:

Hyper - too much

Hypo - too little

HYPERthermia = too hot

HYPOthermia = too cold

Hope this clears things up. CharlotteIsobel (talk) 13:36, 20 November 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Comment on the recent deletion of this page

A user recently deleted this page in full. I used the cache from Google to replace the data and tried to do some minor reformatting. I hope this helps. --Harold

[edit] Comment

There was no mention about the role of pyrogens in fever. Somebody should mention it... --Mattycoze


[edit] 37°C - normal human body temperature ?

Isn't that too high ? As far as I know normal temperature is about 36.6°C and 37°C is sign of illness ---- Xil/talk 10:58, 1 February 2007 (UTC)

37 deg Cel is the classic 98.6deg F, which (while wrong) is close enough to be in the range of normal... however this following statement from the article "As stated above, the temperature of warm-blooded animals is maintained with but slight variation. In health under normal conditions the temperature of humans varies between 36.5 °C and 37.5 °C, or if the thermometer be placed in the axilla, between 36.25 °C and 37.5 °C. In the mouth the reading would be from 0.25 °C to 1.5 °C higher than this; and in the rectum some 0.9 °C higher still. The temperature of infants and young children has a much greater range than this, and is susceptible of wide divergencies from comparatively slight causes." Makes very little sense and should be revised. If the mouth reading can be 1.5degC higher than the armpiut reading of 37.5, then the upper normal range of the mouth would be 39degC which is 102.2degF which is /CLEARLY/ wrong.

Thanks, now it makes sense. I remmember that I read somwhere that temperature differs in different body parts, perhaps that should be included to explain why there is such amplitude in temperature from variations in thermometer placement (I believe that is the reason) -- Xil/talk 21:18, 17 March 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Relation between LOCALISED temperatures, and volume of blood circulation in nearby vessels [?]

I have a question about the temperature of particular areas of the human body, and how they relate to circulation...

When one experiences poor circulation in arms, legs, nose, or other areas of the body; they feel colder to the touch, than other parts of said body. Does this mean that the reduced blood ACTUALLY LOWERS the localised temperature, or does it simply just give the SENSATION of a lower temperature, due to numbing of the nerve cells?

I'm also curious as to whether lower blood flow volume to said body parts may result in necrosis or collapse of the living tissues in MOST cases, (or only in cases where circulation in those locations is virtually nil).

In Hypothermia, blood circulation progressively decreases in the limbs and extremities, as a result of the temperature shift (and a natural defense for the brain and vital organs). My question, in essence, is whether the cause-and-effect is reversible, and if lower circulation can result in lower temperatures; and not just vice-versa.

---Please let me know at your earliest convenience. Pine 20:51, 19 April 2007 (UTC)


Yes, lower blood flow does cause lower temperature in affected areas of the body. It does not simply create the sensation of a lower temperature, since this lower temperature can be confirmed by another individual who does not suffer from poor circulation. To answer your second question, low blood flow, depending on its severity, can lead to reduced function of the affected part, and in cases of very little blood flow (e.g. frostbite), gradual cell death is very possible. Of course, if cells are in contact with an object of exceedingly low temperature, such as liquid nitrogen, they can immediately freeze and die, sometimes completely detaching from the remaining healthy tissue. Lastly, hypothermia is reversible depending on when it is caught, the severity, the amount of cell death. It is most definitely possible to reverse hypothermia; however, permanent damage to varying degrees is not unexpected.
Humanistical The impossible is only that which we don't yet know how to do (talk) 19:48, 7 February 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Thermoregulation in flowering plants

This article lacks a section about thermoregulation in flowering plants. An enunciation can be found at Plant Physiology Online : Temperature Regulation by Thermogenic Flowers. JoJan 14:21, 8 November 2007 (UTC)

  • I added some information about thermoregulation in plants. I was unsure about adding more detail, because the page is already really long. --Kweeket Talk 21:53, 7 December 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Badly done

This page needs some serious cleanup. It's full of grammatical errors and lacks any sort of references. I'd like to see the page redone, or deleted. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Tercero (talk • contribs) 20:44, 7 December 2007 (UTC)

[edit] contested statement removed

  • Cestus {{Fact|date=February 2007}} having lowest death temperature and least amount of solids in its body.

Please do not return this information to the article without a citation.--BirgitteSB 14:12, 9 June 2008 (UTC)