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https://theconversation.com/could-an-afternoon-nap-help-us-cope-with-hotter-temperatures-its-worked-for-australias-first-nations-people-211186>
"When it’s hot outside, it’s safer to head for air-conditioned shelter – right?
Not always.
In northern Australia’s intensely hot climate, air conditioners were once
luxury items. Houses were built to catch the breeze, and everything slowed down
when the hot weather arrived. But over the last few decades, most people in hot
cities like Darwin started spending much more time in air-conditioned comfort.
But our new research has found Territorians have become more likely to die from
heat over the last 40 years, even as cooling has become more widely available.
Why? If people spend all day in air conditioning set at 21℃, not only are they
living more socially isolated and less active lives, but their bodies may not
acclimatise to the heat – and that can make them more vulnerable when they do
emerge into a steamy wet season afternoon.
An even more interesting finding is that the Northern Territory’s First Nations
people are no more vulnerable to heat despite higher burdens of chronic
disease, extreme poverty and very poor housing conditions for most. In many
communities, air conditioning is expensive or unavailable.
How can that be? In part it is because First Nations people are protected by
their culture, as co-author and Warumungu elder Norman Frank Jupurrurla knows
firsthand. “When we look at the road crews working in 45℃ heat, we think – why
are you killing yourself for your job?,” he says. “Why not stay in the shade,
have a nap, and come out later?”
In countries such as Spain, the traditional siesta – a similar cultural method
of coping with heat – has been all but extinguished because of the impact on
the economy. But as the world grapples with ever-hotter temperatures, we may
well need to relearn the art of the afternoon nap."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
