Technical Tuesday Hiccups
Hiccups. Now there’s an interesting
thing that happens to a human body. I’m sure most of you have encountered them,
probably during some inopportune time, like sitting in a quiet classroom.
The word “hiccup” is believed to come
from the word hickop or hicket – words that simply imitated the
sound made when the diaphragm convulsed. In Old English, the word was ælfsogoða because hiccups were thought to
be caused by elves.
A hiccup is, simply speaking, an
involuntary spasm of the diaphragm (the muscle that separates your chest from
your abdomen). Each spasm, or contraction is followed by a sudden closing of
your vocal chords. That’s what produces the characteristic sound.
But pity poor Mr. Osborne! Charles
Osborne (born in 1894) had the hiccups for 68
years, from 1922 until June 5, 1990.
He died in 1991. His doctors believe his hiccups were caused by a damaged blood
vessel in his brain, in the area that normally prevents the hiccup response.
Why his hiccups finally stopped - not long before his death - is a mystery.
From the Big
Blue Book of Ballet Secrets
Secret #28rr:
“A man named Charles Osborne hiccupped for
a total of 68 years.”
Link of the Day:
Quote of the Day:
“I think
hiccup cures were really invented for the amusement of the patient's friends.”
― Bill Watterson, The Complete Calvin and Hobbes
― Bill Watterson, The Complete Calvin and Hobbes
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