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Why Do We Sleep Under Blankets, Even on the Hottest Nights? (2017)

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Re: Why Do We Sleep Under Blankets, Even on the Hottest Nights? (2017)

#51

Post by quickthrowman »

out_of_protocol wrote: post #9
voidUpdate wrote: post #4

> "I barely know what a BTU is" Neither does anyone else, its one of those archaic units that changes slightly based on who is using it and hangs on in oil and gas industries, and also air conditioners and heaters. It was defined as the amount of energy to raise one pound of water by one degree Fahrenheit at one atmosphere of pressure, but that amount of energy depends on the starting temperature of the water, and di…

I blessed to live in a country that uses kilowatts. That works wonderfully (and advertised as such) for AC units

One ton (HVAC unit) is 3.5kW of heat moved for each 1kW of input power under relatively ideal conditions, assuming a max COP of 4. The unit chosen to represent the amount of heat that can be transferred is irrelevant, you get the same information.

Re: Why Do We Sleep Under Blankets, Even on the Hottest Nights? (2017)

#52

Post by quickthrowman »

ahmedfromtunis wrote: post #13

Is this a common thing? Sleeping without any sort of cover during the hot summer months (notably July and August) is the norm here (North Africa) and never heard of anyone who does it (AC or not). Is this an American thing? Do people in warmer regions of the country (Texas, Florida, ...) also feel the same?

It’s always 20C/68F in my apartment during the summer so I sleep with blankets. I keep it that cold to control humidity.

Re: Why Do We Sleep Under Blankets, Even on the Hottest Nights? (2017)

#53

Post by bonsai_spool »

kgwgk wrote: post #50
bonsai_spool wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A specific heat is the amount of energy needed to raise a defined mass of a substance by a defined temperature. What does that have to do with a perfect gas?

The question was > Why would the amount of energy required to increase the temperature of a defined mass of water depend on the temperature? and the answer is that it does, except if you have a very restrictive model where it doesn't. (Edit: I see there was an edit to the previous comment, I had missed that.)

Yes, I wrote both comments.

Why does water relate to the ideal gas law?

Re: Why Do We Sleep Under Blankets, Even on the Hottest Nights? (2017)

#54

Post by dzhiurgis »

quickthrowman wrote: post #51
out_of_protocol wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I blessed to live in a country that uses kilowatts. That works wonderfully (and advertised as such) for AC units

One ton (HVAC unit) is 3.5kW of heat moved for each 1kW of input power under relatively ideal conditions, assuming a max COP of 4. The unit chosen to represent the amount of heat that can be transferred is irrelevant, you get the same information.

So it's a gallon of kilowatts?

Re: Why Do We Sleep Under Blankets, Even on the Hottest Nights? (2017)

#55

Post by dzhiurgis »

etrautmann wrote: post #32
risingsubmarine wrote: post #14

'Go Wild' (John Ratey, Richard Manning) theorizes that the modern concept of bedrooms in which we segregate ourselves to sleep is a mismatch with our evolutionary established state. We would naturally lie in very close proximity of tribe and family for heat, contact and security. Sleeping and resting on one another out in the open. Perhaps pillows and blankets (esp weighted) serve as a proxy for this, not just temper…

That would result in insanity for me. Is there any argument other than it seems like cave people must have?

Not just you. Most are insane already. Temperature, noise, light, other partner, pillows, ventilation, caffeine, wind down (including me as I write this comment) - majority of people mismanage this so badly. We spend 1/3rd of our time on it, it's probably top 5 of most important things in our life, yet we butcher it so badly.

Re: Why Do We Sleep Under Blankets, Even on the Hottest Nights? (2017)

#56

Post by boelboel »

rsynnott wrote: post #42
boelboel wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not just bedding but clothing was costly. High quality bedding (as well as clothing) still costs quite a bit of money especially once you take into account you need 2 sets for rotation. A proper quality set will run you $1000-2500 and there's luxury brands which will cost much more.

… Wait, what? In what sense are my ikea sheets improper?

The cheaper sheets in Ikea don't use linen or will use a blend. The ones which do tend to use flax do so with worse characteristics (shorter or uneven fibers). I'm not sure about Ikea in particular but cheaper sheets are more often thinner to save on material costs, same thing happens with T-Shirts where a significant part of the price is just fabric cost.

They use worse weaving machines which go quicker causing a worse texture, fibers also really limit the weaving. You'd genuinely have to feel to understand the difference. The edges/'insert part' will also be more refined.

Your linen sheets will be washed more thoroughly before using when you buy luxury linen. Luxury brands will be more strict quality control.

This doesn't mean the Ikea ones are improper but there's a reason people pay more for quality products, these products tend to be made in countries with higher labour costs as well (Belgium, Ireland, Italy, Baltic countries ...). All my bedding comes from Libeco in Flanders and most of my linen clothing comes from "Not Perfect Linen" in Lithuania which is affordable considering it's custom made.

Re: Why Do We Sleep Under Blankets, Even on the Hottest Nights? (2017)

#57

Post by kgwgk »

bonsai_spool wrote: post #53
kgwgk wrote: post #50

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The question was > Why would the amount of energy required to increase the temperature of a defined mass of water depend on the temperature? and the answer is that it does, except if you have a very restrictive model where it doesn't. (Edit: I see there was an edit to the previous comment, I had missed that.)

Yes, I wrote both comments. Why does water relate to the ideal gas law?

It doesn't. Your initial assumption that the heat capacity is a thing that doesn't depend on temperature did (because it may apply to ideal gases as opposed to water where it just doesn't stay constant as you noticed later).

Re: Why Do We Sleep Under Blankets, Even on the Hottest Nights? (2017)

#58

Post by steanne »

expedition32 wrote: post #3

I did not realize that things like sheets, blankets and pillows used to cost serious money.

also consider the labor involved in upkeep. this is one of the rationales for nightwear: it's much easier to wash a change of nightclothes every so often than large sheets and blankets.

Re: Why Do We Sleep Under Blankets, Even on the Hottest Nights? (2017)

#60

Post by helzinia »

> there has also been a decent amount of research about the calming effect of weighted blankets, which can weigh up to 30 pounds. Studies indicate that they can curb anxiety and even be used in the treatment of autism.

What odd phrasing, "the treatment of autism". Wouldn't it suffice to say a lot of autistic people find them comforting? This may just be my bugbear, but I notice a lot of these depersonalising statements in anthropology, psychology, etc when an author wants to hold up some supporting example about a group of people they are not experts on.

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