Talk:Thermoregulation

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Wiki Education Foundation-supported course assignment
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Wiki Education Foundation-supported course assignment
This article was the subject of a Wiki Education Foundation-supported course assignment, between 6 January 2021 and 21 April 2021. Further details are available on the course page. Student editor(s): NoName1211.

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Untitled
Vandalism at Ectothermy versus Endothermy "To cope with low temperatures, some cows have developed the ability to remain functional even when the water temperature is below freezing; some use natural antifreeze or..." That should probably read fish instead of cows, but I want to leave that to someone who normally reviews this page. Disgustedandamused (talk) 14:07, 17 June 2011 (UTC)

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)

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

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

vandalism
Someone vandalized this page, Oct, 11, 2005. I'll revise it. Adam850 00:00, 12 October 2005 (UTC) a homoeothermic vandalized this page in 2015 october 13 — Preceding unsigned comment added by 122.62.116.154 (talk) 01:57, 2 March 2014 (UTC)

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)

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)

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)

if an experiment shows that the body temperature varies by 0.8C,what does that show about the thermoregulation of human bodies??- Maria Chaudhry

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

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

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)

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)

Humanistical The impossible is only that which we don&#39;t yet know how to do (talk) 19:48, 7 February 2008 (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.

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)

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)

contested statement removed

 * Cestus having lowest death temperature and least amount of solids in its body.

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

Arterioles
Isn't it arteries. I'm not positive, but I think that vasodialation occurs when arteries and veins expand. Please correct me if I'm wrong. I just was wondering. Thanks.

Drdaver User:Drdaver (talk) 21:48, 2 April 2009 (UTC)
 * No - arterioles are the main vessles responsible for vasoconstriction and vasodilation.

Temperature symptoms
"Only 37% of heat is lost through your head."

Should this really be underneath that category?

Thank you for your suggestion. When you feel an article needs improvement, please feel free to make those changes. Wikipedia is a wiki, so anyone can edit almost any article by simply following the  link at the top. The Wikipedia community encourages you to be bold in updating pages. Don't worry too much about making honest mistakes — they're likely to be found and corrected quickly. If you're not sure how editing works, check out how to edit a page, or use the sandbox to try out your editing skills. New contributors are always welcome. You don't even need to log in (although there are many reasons why you might want to). WhatamIdoing (talk) 19:23, 24 November 2008 (UTC)

It may or may not be. I am sure that it is no, but im not positive. Its probably just a minor edit because I think the person who put that wouldn't be quite sure either. Jcpower

Could someone add a section discussing the usage of the terms homeotherm/poikilotherm vs. endotherm/ectotherm? Thanks, Wikimedes (talk) 02:03, 22 June 2010 (UTC)

Homoeothermic, Endothermic,  Poikilothermic,  Ectothermic
Regulation of body temperature is important to the maintenance of "homeostasis" of the physiological processes within a living organism. Homoeostasis, is the normal balanced physiological state that allows a organism to function, for example, a normal temperature, or metabolism. This is true for single celled organisms, to more complex, multi-cellular organisms. The way each organism regulates temperature depends on the environment in which it exists, and the type of physiological functions its cells and organs need to carry out to maintain life. Definitions: Medical and scientific words are usually compounded from prefixes, suffixes, and root words such as the following; homeo; Similar, alike,      		stasis; Balanced or no change, endo; Internal, within,     		poikilo; Varying, irregular, ecto; Outside of,			thermic; Producing heat,

Homoeothermic or Endothermic: An organism whose stable body temperature is generally independent of the temperature of its surrounding environment. (Dictionary) Most mammals are homoeothermic. Poikilothermic or Ectothermic: Having a body temperature that varies according to the temperature of the local atmosphere. (Dictionary) Reptiles, amphibians, insects, and fish are all poikilothermic. WORKS CITED 1. Dictionary, Encarta. Encarta Dictionary: English ( North American). 2010. 22 August 2010 . --Ctprvt science (talk) 04:04, 23 August 2010 (UTC)

References, citations and further reading
Hello follks. After saving this comment, I'll make a couple of section changes, which are not dramatic or major, but will facilitate the addition of resource material, and take care of the problem of three uncited texts listed in the article.

If the texts aren't accurately cited within the article by the original editor, there is no way for anyone else to know the extent to which they have served as a reference. In such circumstances, the best thing to do is to place them into a 'Further reading' section, which is what I'm going to do. If someone is subsequently able to verify the relevant text, either from the text itself, or a work citing the text, then it's just a matter of relocating the text from the 'Further reading' section into an inline citation using the tags at either end of the citation template. If the author or text is well enough known, and if it is a seminal work or series of studies, contemporary works will make some comment on it.

For example, Simpson and Galbraith pop up quite a bit in various internet searches, but I've not found a close enough match to justify me placing their 1905 article into an online citation without more work on the article than I can spare the time for. I did however find works which cite Simpson and Galbraith, and the utility of the 'Further reading' section is that I can add such things for later utilisation by me or someone else. If that is never done, the information is still there for readers to pursue. The further reading section also allows the addition of other material from which interested editors can glean either citations for existing text - with or without modifications to that text - and/or material to add to the article.

In the process of creating the further reading section, I'll also change the "Notes" section to "References", since that is in fact what they are. Wotnow (talk) 22:31, 8 September 2010 (UTC)

Correction
The endotherms section states that any organism that regulate their own body temperature are known as geothermic which is clearly incorrect. I suspect vandalism as the sentence starts with "An geothermic ...". I'm going to change the sentence from "An geothermic is an animal that regulates its own body temperature, typically by keeping it a constant level." to "An endotherm is an animal that regulates its own body temperature, typically by keeping it a constant level.". Could somebody verify the accuracy of this as I'm not sure whether an endotherm always regulates it's own temperature. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 138.250.6.108 (talk) 14:24, 1 April 2011 (UTC)

Problem with reference 7
Hi,

I have checked the reference myself and cannot find anything stating that liver is a major player in homeostasis in body temperature. In fact, using the index

Temperature (body) regulation of

did not bring me anywhere close to liver. I have added a tag which may not be well coded. Can someone fix it for me? Or do I simply remove the whole sentence? I believe that it is partially correct if we are to add that liver is a major organ in generating metabolic products => hence produce heat.

Flowright138 (talk) 03:45, 11 September 2011 (UTC)
 * Tag fixed. Vsmith (talk) 12:39, 11 September 2011 (UTC)
 * Thanks VSmith - may I please call forward the person who have added this entry and justify their claim? Flowright138 (talk) 15:22, 15 September 2011 (UTC)

Just found a link to that reference http://www.academia.edu/368593/Human_Physiology_Gyton_Hall_ page 890 it is the first sentance under the heading heat loss. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 101.168.255.238 (talk) 08:33, 26 December 2012 (UTC)
 * Have sighted the page and relevant text. Will amend inline citation accordingly, and remove the tag. Wotnow (talk) 18:51, 28 January 2013 (UTC)

arrector pili muscles
Isn't it called arrector pili muscles?

NOT errector pili muscles? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 202.169.218.20 (talk) 06:24, 12 April 2012 (UTC)
 * The correct spelling according The Free Dictionary is 'erector' which quotes The American Heritage® Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2007, 2004 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. I have changed the text. DrChrissy (talk) 17:33, 31 August 2012 (UTC)
 * Oooohps. I might have jumped the gun with my previous edit.  Further searches reveal it is/can be spelt 'arrector'  - the same web-site as above but this page quotes Dorland's Medical Dictionary for Health Consumers. © 2007 by Saunders, an imprint of Elsevier, Inc.  There appears to be a greater number of sites using 'arrector', therefore I will revert my change.DrChrissy (talk) 18:13, 31 August 2012 (UTC)

Fundamental flaws
There appear to be fundamental flaws in this article. Endotherm is defined as 'An endotherm is an animal that regulates its own body temperature, typically by keeping it at a constant level' yet I always thought endothermy meant 'heat from within'. Indeed, the WP Endothermy article states 'An endotherm is an organism that produces heat through internal means, such as muscle shivering or increasing its metabolism (Greek: endon = "within", thermē = "heat").' I believe the Thermoregulation article needs looking at closely in terms of the text and organisation - it apperas to go from thermoregulation in humans to theromregulation in plants, and then back to humans!DrChrissy (talk) 16:38, 5 September 2012 (UTC)

Thermoregulation in vertebrates
The explanation regarding rabbits thermoregulation before they die to rabies doesn't seem to convey any information about survival strategies.68.84.158.248 (talk) 21:38, 24 October 2012 (UTC)

Creation should be considered
On bullet point 2.3, Thermoregulation in humans, this phrase appeared the last time I checked. For humans, adaptation to varying climatic conditions includes both physiological mechanisms as a byproduct of evolution, and the conscious development of cultural adaptations. The problem is that this does not consider the Creationist viewpoint. Creationism is a valid point, whether it is right or not. Legolover26 (talk) 15:10, 18 January 2013 (UTC) That was 18 days ago. I have now edited it the way I think it should look. Legolover26 (talk) 15:21, 5 February 2013 (UTC)

The evolutionary basis, just as any assertion made on wikipedia, is backed by cited references. Creationism and evolution are not at odds, since they describe different parts of natural history - abiogenesis, versus environmental adaptation. Your assertion of dispute is made without grounds or evidence or references. Antiduh (talk) 18:59, 2 May 2013 (UTC)

Human body temperature and thermoregulation
A Spanish article specifically about human body temperature is necessary: Spanish-language article termorregulación includes both issues. --Correogsk or Gustavo (Eritrocito or Heme aquí) 02:37, 28 November 2013 (UTC)

"physiological (?) or physiological ecology"
I think there is a missing word after the first "physiological" in this:
 * the study of such processes in zoology has been called physiological or physiological ecology

jnestorius(talk) 22:54, 16 May 2015 (UTC)

Homeotherm/poikilotherm vs. endotherm/ectotherm vs. warm-blooded/cold-blooded vs. thermoregulating/thermoconforming
This article is incredibly confusing in its use of the terms "thermoregulating", "thermoconforming", "cold-blooded", "warm-blooded", "homeothermic", "poikilothermic", "ectothermic", and "endothermic".

At the beginning of the introduction we are taught the terms "thermoregulating" and "thermoconforming". At the beginning of section 1 the terms "ectotherm" and "endotherm" are introduced, defined as synonymous with "cold-blooded" and "warm-blooded", yet the claim is made that the common understanding of "cold-blooded" is wrong, as ectotherms actually maintain their temperature at the same temperatures as endotherms. Later at the end of section 1 the terms "homeothermy" and "poikilothermy" are introduced with no relationship to the previous terms, yet they seem to be defined to match the colloquial understanding of warm-blooded (stable body temperature) and cold-blooded (variable body temperature). These definitions also seem to be the same as "thermoconforming" and "thermoregulating", but no explanation is made of that here.

At this point, the beginning reader would believe that because ectotherms and endotherms are described as maintaining the same temperatures, they are both subcategories of homeotherms, and poikilotherms are a separate category; and that "cold-blooded" and "warm-blooded" are synonyms for "ectotherm" and "endotherm".

And then at the beginning of section 2, suddenly the article uses "homeothermic" and "poikilothermic" as synonyms for warm-blooded and cold-blooded, which were just a moment ago defined to mean different things.

If all four of these sets of terms mean the same thing, the article should state this clearly, and then be consistent and pick one pair to use throughout. If they mean different things, the article should clearly specify what the difference is and how these categories relate to one another.

Note the above needs to be signed.
 * I made a similar point in September 2012! Perhaps a list or table of definitions is needed? DrChrissy (talk) 10:19, 25 October 2015 (UTC)

Rewrite needed
This article is an incredible mess. I have removed a whole lot of uncited, doubtful and in parts irrelevant material, but the remainder is poorly organized, overlaps with itself and is as DrChrissy says confusing and poorly written. It's reaching the stage where WP:TNT is required - a total rewrite. More random additions of vaguely-new, vaguely-interesting, vaguely-on-topic claims (I won't call them facts) will make it worse. Basically the topic is not complicated (when hot, cool down; when cold, warm up) so it's amazing what a tangle it has got into. Chiswick Chap (talk) 18:20, 4 November 2015 (UTC)

Ok, here's a case in point. An IP editor, I guess one of many students now doing Wikipedia coursework, has added the following:


 * Another example of possible temperature regulation is the E. meriana orchid bee. Some researchers suggest that the wing buzzing seen in E. meriana is a behavioral mechanism that helps to cool the body of the bee down in tropical climates as a form of thermoregulation. The sunlit territories they live in can significantly elevate the body temperature of the bee.

This text is not bad in itself - it is intelligible and well cited. The thing is, my comment above still stands: the article is already well peopled with assorted facts, most of them cited. What it isn't is organized; and without a framework to fit assorted claims into, one more just increases the jabberwocky feel of the thing. If there is a team of students ready and willing, and it seems there is, could they work on the framework please? It would make a fine "project", and it would genuinely improve Wikipedia and help readers. Chiswick Chap (talk) 09:20, 5 November 2015 (UTC)

What is panting
Can somebody add a sentence explaining what is panting or, rather, what is the difference between sweating and panting? — Preceding unsigned comment added by Cristiklein (talk • contribs) 22:09, 30 June 2016 (UTC)

Citations are out of order
The citations in the section on plants, and likely others, are not in the correct locations. Clicking a ref number pops up a reference that appears wrong, but is just a citation that should be linked elsewhere. example: the ref for sacred lotus info is actually about skunk cabagge. Fitzhugh (talk) 14:59, 2 March 2020 (UTC)

Low Body Temperature and Lifespan Issues
I am somewhat concerned about this section regarding longevity and internal body temperature as mentioned in the article as I have read elsewhere that in humans, women tend to have higher body temperatures but seem to live longer than men on average. In fact it was even mentioned in the article itself that women have on average higher body temperatures than men. I am by no means an expert on this topic but wouldn't it be appropriate to mention this contradictory evidence? Vapememes2020 (talk) 14:41, 19 January 2021 (UTC)

Famale reproductive system
Famale reproductive system 197.211.59.127 (talk) 20:38, 21 February 2023 (UTC)