Actor Zac Efron Broke His Jaw

Image by Liam Mendes from Wikipedia

This past weekend, actor Zac Efron slipped in a puddle of water outside his home and fell resulting in a severe facial cut as well as a broken jaw. [link]

Unlike most facial fractures that do NOT require any surgical intervention, most jaw fractures do need to be surgically repaired and typically entail wiring the jaw shut. Often, a metal plate with screws will be utilized to stabilize the fracture as well.

The reason the jaw is wired shut is so that as the broken bone heals, it heals in such a way that the way the teeth comes together is normal (in essence, the teeth act as the cast for the jaw fracture). Of course, eating is limited to liquid diet and dental care is important as brushing the teeth thoroughly will be impossible.

The wires holding the jaw shut can be removed after a few weeks, but exact duration depends on the fracture location and severity.

Source:
Zac Efron broke his jaw this weekend. CNN 11/13/13

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Woman Drinks Beer Through Her Ear

Now I am not sure if this woman is actually drinking beer through her right ear at a Czech beer festival as reported by Huffington Post, but is it anatomically even possible?

Well the answer is that it IS theoretically possible though highly improbable.

In order for this to occur, there must first be a hole in the eardrum. Given an eardrum hole, beer can be sucked up into the ear canal (1), through the hole in the eardrum (2), into the middle ear space (3), through the eustachian tube (4), and down into the throat.

Now why would it be highly unlikely that the women is drinking beer through her ear?

1) The eustachian tube opening is VERY small (< 2mm). Trying to suck beer through the eustachian tube would be even harder than trying to suck beer into the mouth through a coffee stirrer.

2) The video would have been more believable if she pinched her nose up when drinking beer into the ear.  The fact that she is not makes it unlikely adequate negative pressure can build up in the back of the nose to the point that it would suck beer up into the ear. Not pinching the nose is equivalent to trying to drink something up into the mouth WITHOUT making a tight lip seal around the straw.

Even if you could drink beer through the ear, you really shouldn't because...

1) Beer contains alcohol and if this touches the middle ear region which is very sensitive, there would be quite a bit of pain akin to alcohol touching an open skin wound.

2) Alcohol can also potentially lead to permanent hearing loss if drawn into the middle ear. It's the same reason why earwax removal drops specifically caution against using it whenever there's a hole in the eardrum.

3) Beer in the ear could lead to an ear infection.

4) Lastly, if the beer is not at body temperature, it could lead to severe dizziness due to a phenomenon known as caloric vestibular stimulation.

So... don't do it... even if you could!

Source:
Woman Drinks Beer Though Her Ear? Czech Clip Appears To Show Crazy, Dangerous Stunt (VIDEO). Huffington Post 5/14/13

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Why Does Burping after Drinking Soda Burn the Nose?

I do not believe this question has actually been scientifically studied... but I can hazard a guess.

Sodas are those flavored fizzy drinks like Coca-Cola and Pepsi.

The "fizziness" is due to carbonation or carbon dioxide dissolved within the drink. When sodas are made, carbon dioxide is forced into the liquid under pressure so that there's more gas dissolved in the liquid than at regular air pressure. The bubbles you see and feel is caused by the carbon dioxide gas being released back into the air when exposed to back into regular air pressure (a closed can or bottle keeps the carbon dioxide under pressure within the liquid).

Such machines can even be purchased to make sodas at home (see below).

A soda becomes flat when all the carbon dioxide has been released back into the air.

In any case, why the burn?

Carbon dioxide (CO2) and water (H2O) together undergo a chemical reaction to form a very weak acid  called carbonic acid (H2CO3).

CO2 + H2O <--> H2CO3

So, after drinking some soda, the CO2 that is released reacts with the water inside your mouth, throat, and belly. The resulting carbonic acid, some of which is aerosolized, can than be burped up into the nose.

The nasal lining is quite sensitive, and when in contact with carbonic acid, can cause a burning sensation.

Now... does this actually happen?

Well, sounds like a potential neat research project that can potentially even be done by a high school student.

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