Kathmandu. Due to the remnants of cyclone ‘Arnab’ developed in the Bay of Bengal and the partial effect of western winds, there has been continuous rain across the country since last night. The weather has become colder as people’s lives are being affected by continuous rains. The coldness that has increased along with the rain has also started giving the impression that the winter season has started.
But with such a change in weather, it is natural to wonder how our body feels hot and cold temperatures. Sweating when it’s hot and shivering when it’s cold are normal physical reactions. But, how does the signal of heat and cold that we feel reach the brain? How does the brain distinguish these two different feelings?
Recently, a study led by Hironori Watanabe, a researcher at Waseda University in Tokyo, Japan, has provided new information about how the brain processes hot and cold temperatures.
Previously, the research conducted using fMRI technology showed that the areas of the brain including the medial prefrontal cortex and the posterior parietal cortex are activated when feeling both hot and cold. However, since the same area of the brain is activated in both cases, the question of how the brain differentiates between hot and cold was unanswered.
To find the answer to this question, researchers have used electroencephalogram (EEG) technology.
Twenty people, 11 men and 9 women, participated in the study published in the journal Neuroscience. They were made to feel different temperatures by placing their fingers on a special device.
During the research, 40 degrees Celsius was used as hot, 24 degrees as cold and 32 degrees as normal reference temperature. None of these temperatures were painful.
In the study, the electrical activity of the brain was analyzed by Dipole Analysis and Event Related Spectral Perturbation i.e. ERSP technique.
Research has confirmed that some of the same areas of the brain are activated in both hot and cold conditions. However, it has been found that the changes in the different frequencies of the electrical waves generated in the brain are different. In particular, the changes observed in theta, mu and beta rhythms indicate that they play an important role in differentiating the sensation of hot and cold.
In other words, although the same areas of the brain are activated when feeling hot and cold, the pattern of electrical activity generated in those areas is seen to be different.
The findings of the research show that in the future, the use of artificial intelligence (AI) can be used to analyze the brain activity of a person and immediately identify what temperature is comfortable or uncomfortable for him. From this, it will be possible to develop an automatic AC and air conditioning system that prioritizes human comfort. Similarly, it is expected to help in evaluating what kind of temperature is comfortable for people while designing clothes.
However, most of the people in the study were in their late teens or early 20s. The researchers suggest that different age groups should be included in the future research because the ability to feel temperature may differ according to age.