new scientist magazine 12 dec - '09
TRANSCRIPT
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 1/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 2/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 3/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 4/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 5/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 6/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 7/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 8/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 9/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 10/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 11/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 12/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 13/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 14/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 15/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 16/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 17/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 18/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 19/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 20/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 21/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 22/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 23/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 24/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 25/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 26/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 27/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 28/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 29/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 30/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 31/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 32/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 33/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 34/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 35/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 36/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 37/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 38/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 39/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 40/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 41/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 42/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 43/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 44/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 45/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 46/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 47/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 48/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 49/50
8/8/2019 New Scientist Magazine 12 Dec - '09
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/new-scientist-magazine-12-dec-09 50/50
THE LASTWORDLast wordspast andpresent plusques t ions. at
www.last-wcrd.ccm
Swallow your pride
rvejust seen asword-swall owing
act. Swordsseemingly longer thanthe depth f romt hroat t oanuswere
swallowed . It hastobea tr ick.
doesn't it? If lt is, what's the triCk?
If itlsn't,what's goingon7
_ThetalleryouaTC themoreswordyoucanswallow, but it
cannotgopast the pitofthe
stomach.Andthat isone thing
that swordswallowershavetoget
used to - the feeling as the point
ofthe sword arrivesthere... just
touching,and nomore.This is
whysomeswallowerseatheavy
foodjust beforeperforming,to
stretch thestomach abit so they
canswallowalongersword.
Theotherthingthey have10 gel
used to isthegaggingreflexwhen
they start toswallow,Thiscan be
controlledeven!ually.Swa llowers usesilk to clean the
sword just before it's inserted to
removeanydust and againwhile
the sword isbeingwithdrawn(With agreatflou rtshofsilk)to
cleanoffacid stomach juicesthat
canattackthe steel.It'salla
matterofskill and nerve,with
little roomfor trickery.
For thebestaccountofthisand
more,includingswallowinggiant
corkscrews that makethe pharynx
jumpupanddownasthey twist;
howtoswallowneon tubes to
make thechestglowfrom inside;
and howtoeatand swallowfire
(whenlearning,have alot of ice
creamhandy), canbefound in
Memoirsoj aSwordSwallower,by
DanMannix, first published in
1951when Iboughtmycopy.
I'll never forget that openingsentence:"I probablynever would
have becomeAmerica'sleadingfire-eaterif Flamo theGreat
hadn't happened to explode that
night infront ofKrinko'sGreat
CombinedCarnivalSideShows."
MichaelBoddy
Binalollg,NewSourhWales,
Australia
_ There isno trickto a genuine
sword-swallowingact,or rather
not the kindoft rickyour
correspondent is probably
thinkingof.Strictlyspeaking,
a true swordswallowerdoesn't
actuallyswallowthe sword,but
Ihat apparent contradictionis the
keytohowtheyactuallymanage
toget the bladeallthewaydown.
To join the Swo rdSwallower's
Association International.a
would-bemember hasto
demonstrate the ability to
"swallow"a non-retractable,
solidsteelbladethat is at least
2 centimetreswideand
"Swallowers usesilk toclean the sword of acidstomach juices as i t isbeing withdrawn"
38centimetreslong.withthose
qualifications,it's not really
surprising that thecurrent
worldwidemembershipof the
SSAlis restrictedto a fewdozen
full·timeprofessionalsand a
handfulof amateurs.Norisit a
surprise that,despitetheSSAI's
strictmembership criteria,many
peoplebcltevea trickbladeis
employed,particularlywhen
one learns that therecord length
fora swallowedblade isan
eye-watering 82.5cm.Theperformer. througha
regimeofpractice, learns to
suppressthenaturalgag
instinct,by relaxingtheupperoesophagealsphincter - which
nonn allydosesthe throat to
prevent us chokingordrowning.
Todo this, theyusuallystart by
' There isno trick to swordswallowing. The recordlength fo r aswallowed
blade is 82.5 centimetres"
forcingtheirfingersdown their
throat andthenworktheirway
through a rangeof longer and
bulkier everydayobjects,before
regularlyexercisingwith a
carefullyfoldedwirecoathanger.
Curiously,in swordswallowing.
asinsomanyotheraspectsoflife,
size apparentlydoesn't matter.
Although theartistewho
swallowed theaforementionedaa.s -cmswordwas220 cm tall. itistheconfigurationofa performer's
insides that determinesthe lengthofbladetheycan swallow.
Particularlycritical is the angleof
thegastro-oesophagealjunction,
orcardia, the point where the
oesophagusjoinsthe stomach.
Thecardia iswherethe lower
oesophagealsphincterisfound.
This sphincter preventsgastric
juices flowingupoutofthe
stomachintothethroat. It isthe
abilitytoexercisecontrolover
thisvalve,and keepit relaxed
whenit should,by reflex.close,
that tscrntcatfor a performer.
It isscarcelysurprisingthat
industrial injuriesamongsword
swallowersproduceadistinctivepathology.Whilenomember of
the SSAl hasdied asa result ofa
performancegoing awry, at least
one sword swallower hasbrushed
theside ofhisheart with ablade,
and perforationsand lacerations
ofboth theoesophagusand
pharynx arecommon,asare
lowerchest pains.These painsare
often associatedwith adramatic
technique knownas"thedrop".
wherethesword isdowned inone
smooth action,controlledonlyby
themusclesof the pharynx.
Themost widespread
occupationalhazardsufferedby
swordswallowersisa sore throat
"sword throat".asitis known.
Atleastone swallowerhad to
terminate theircareerthrough
losingthe ability to salivate, as
saliva isthe principal lubricant
employed toeasethe passageof
the blade (although butter has
been usedasa substitute).Ofcourse,this isan experiment
thatwould-be researchersshould
never.everattempt at home.Hadrianleffs
Norwich,Norfolk, UK
This week's question
GOGGLEWOBBLE
However tight I fastenmy
swimminggogglestheyalways
end up roundmyneckafter Idivein.This never seems tohappen to
Olympicswimmers.Whynot?
FrallcisMeloBirmingham,UK
Questklns erdanswers snouo beconcise,we reserve therighttoedit items forclarity
eoostyle.lrd.II:1e adaytime teeobore
numberandemail address if joOO have
one,RestrictQuestions toscient if(
NewScientist retains total editorial control
thecontent rf;TheLastWord.Send
cesncoseooanswers toTheLastWord,
NewScientist, LilCOr'I House. 84Theobald'sRoact un ocnWC IXBNS. UK. byemail to
Do PolarBearsGet Lonely? • ~