WHY GIRAFFES DON'T FAINT

Worksheet

A. OBSERVATIONS OF BLOOD IN GRAVITY

Record what happened to the glove in a vertical position (hold the glove with the thumb and taped end pointing up and the fingers pointing down). How is the "blood" (contents of the glove) distributed? How flexible is the glove? What happens if you squeeze one of the fingers near the bottom?

B. OBSERVATIONS OF BLOOD IN MICROGRAVITY

Record what happened to the glove in a horizontal position. How is the blood distributed? How flexible is the glove?

Follow-up Questions:

1. Which glove position has more pressure on the fingers?

2. Which position has the best blood distribution to the thumb ("head")

3. How can blood flow be increased to the "head" while in the vertical position?

4. Why might returning astronauts faint?

5. Why don't giraffes faint?

6. What could NASA scientists learn from the blood circulation of giraffes that could help them with astronaut training?