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Fight or Flight

Fight or Flight. The Science Behind the Impossible. When the Impossible Meets Reality.

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Fight or Flight

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  1. Fight or Flight The Science Behind the Impossible

  2. When the Impossible Meets Reality • What if I told you, you could pick up a car, wrestle a grizzly bear and win, or pick up more than half a ton and throw it over your head. Would you believe me? Probably not. So what would you say when I tell you it’s completely possible? That means any average Joe could become Superman.

  3. Our body is a marvel of engineering. Created as the result of millions of years of evolution and ingenuity. It’s so good at what it does that we often take it for granted, only when it exceeds what’s humanly possible do we realize the power of the machine we are in control in. As a result of those millions of years of evolution, we have a hard wired system called the Fight or Flight system. It’s not technically a system, but a serious of processes we go through when ever we encounter danger, fear, or stress. The Machine: The Human Body

  4. Fight or Flight? A clearly scared monkey • So what is the Fight or Flight system? It’s basically an automatic defense response our body goes through when we encounter a dangerous, scary, or fearful situation. The end results include superhuman strength, agility, perception, and speed to match that of a racehorse.

  5. Behind the Scenes • So what allows us to do these amazing things? In short, adrenaline. But we have to look beyond that to its source. The adrenal glands. On the top of the kidneys sit two very important glands called the adrenal glands. These glands are made up of two parts. • The Adrenal Cortex (outer part): produces vital hormones such as cortisol (which regulates metabolism) and aldosterone (helps control blood pressure). • The Adrenal Medulla (inner part): produces adrenaline.

  6. Adrenaline Junkies • When our body percepts danger in our environment our hypothalamus sends chemical messengers to our adrenal glands which in turn release a large amount of adrenaline and cortisol into our bloodstream. This cocktail of super drugs enter our heart and are transported to nearly every cell in our body.

  7. The Effects • When the hormones reach our cells the following happens in our body • Increased respiratory rate • Increased heat rate • Our digestive system’s blood supply is redirected to our muscles and limbs (more blood=more oxygen, more oxygen=more power for the muscles to use) • Pupil dilation • Intensified awareness • Sharpened sight • Quickened impulses • Diminished perception of pain • Muscles in our arms and legs contract (contractions propels everything done by our muscles). Contractions at this level allows us to pick up the heaviest of things. • Muscles in our throat relax to allow oxygen in our body • The liver is signaled to flood our body with glucose to fuel our body

  8. ATP • Even with all of these hormones acting on our body it isn’t enough to help us escape from danger. So our body taps into our muscles for energy it carries. Adenosine triphosphate (ATP). ATP is the energy molecule used to power everthing done by our muscles. • ATP is made up of carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, oxygen, and phosphoros atoms. There are three phosphoros atoms in the molecule. Each of the phosphoror atoms are at the center of an tomic group called the phosphate bonds, these bonds is where the energy of the molecule is stored. • Our muscles store a reserve of ATP and whenever the body senses danger, it signals the muscles to release the reserve. This reserve is what allows us to run faster than a racehorse or carry more than half a ton in times of danger.

  9. The Negatives • So why doesn’t our body stay in “hyper mode” all the time? Wouldn’t it be beneficial to be able to do these tings conciuosl? Simply put, it would kill us. Staying in a state of exitement for so long would put an enourmous strain on our heart and the rest of our body. Not to mention we would always be running out of fuel. • Another thing wrong with the fight or flight system is that it is “outdated”. Back in the prehistoric times, humans could release their power in physical forms. But in today’s day and age, that’s not socially acceptable. And anything can trigger or fight or flight system, from a simple dispute with our friends to losing that important homework due today. So this overdose of hormones stays in our body with no way out, causing anxiety or panic attacks, and it puts a strain on our body causing early death.

  10. Conclusion • So I guess we can end this presentation the way we started it. The human body is an amazing biological machine unique in the world around us, but the most amazing stuff it can do is the stuff it keeps to itself.

  11. Sources • Howstuffworks.com • Stress.about.com • Endocrineweb.com • Thehumanbodysolution.com • Trueorigin.org

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