(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . Climate Crisis -- How Do You Dress For Extremes? [1] ['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.'] Date: 2024-06-27 Because we seem to be trying to turn a planet that supports life into one that does not, I’m posting a question or topic here every week to see if together we can work out the nuts and bolts of how to survive. Prior questions were: Do You Stay or Do You Go? What Is Your Timeline? What Skill Do You Need To Learn? How Will You Deal With Flooding? What About Potable Water? Got Energy? What Are Your Preparations For A Food Emergency? Do You Have Enough Nutrients? What Are Your Plans For Fire? What Will You Do About Medical Care? What Are Your Plans For Mental Health? Do You Have Community? Will You Kill Invasive Species? What Are You Doing About Information Access? Will You Assist Migration? This week’s question is How Do You Dress For Extremes? Evaporative cooling and wet-bulb temperatures set the rules When exercising or in high temperatures, humans thermoregulate by sweating. To evaporate, molecules have to jump from a slower moving liquid to a much faster moving gas, and this process needs energy. Sweat on the skin takes energy from our bodies to evaporate, thus cooling us down. However, the more water there is in the air, the harder it is to produce enough energy to make sweat evaporate. The combination of temperature and humidity is called the wet-bulb temperature. The higher the humidity, the lower the maximum temperature where human sweat evaporates; after you hit the max temp, sweating cannot cool you down. Current studies into wet-bulb temperature limits show that human fatalities can start at wet bulb temps as low as 82°F/28°C in humid environments. So good hot-weather clothing needs to increase the amount of evaporative cooling and decrease the impacts of high wet-bulb temperatures. Humans figured out how to dress for dry heat long ago Strategies generally depend on both melanin and available resources. Across much of the dry, hot, human environment, large, lightweight fabric squares, usually light-colored, were draped over the body and cinched in a few places. This type of clothing provides airflow against the skin, large surfaces for wicking away sweat (and for it to evaporate off), and a reflective surface to bounce heat and UV away. Linen, cotton, and silk are the most common natural fibers for this, though very fine wool (open weave or knit, with long staples and a micron count of ~20), bamboo fibers, and pounded (felted) bark cloth are used as well. Humans have figured out how to dress for humidity In hot areas between the tropics, the best fabrics were often none. Instead, many of the cultures in these areas had natural or created spaces that stayed many degrees colder than the surrounding landscapes. Caves, shaded gullies or valleys, stone temples — all are cooler and so less capable of holding humidity. These are the original cooling centers. What about artificial fibers? When spun, woven or knit, sewn, washed, and thrown out, artificial fibers produce micro- and nano-plastic pollution. Making the fibers is difficult and requires chemicals that are not typically available or easy to cook up. So, while some artificial fibers may have efficacies similar to natural fibers, they have big environmental costs and require industrial-scale processing. But there are instances when nothing else will work, such as in unliveable environments. Humans have even figured out how to dress for unliveable environments When you’re dressing for underwater, active volcanoes, or outer space, you use artificial materials. This clothing, though, is only good for short-term excursions; that’s why we have space stations and submarines, and why there are no human habitats on active volcanoes. And even our larger containers — spaceships and underwater bases — are only temporary shelters. We cannot live in these environments; we can make bubbles that can travel through them, but we must stay in a human-environment bubble in order to survive. So how do we dress for heat plus humidity plus potential unliveability? Some outdoor theatre festivals have put on shows in very hot weather. The costumers for these festivals sew pockets inside the costumes: at the armpits, at the curve of the lower back, inside the thighs, at the back of the neck, and at the belly (if they can get away with it). These pockets hold cold packs. The actors don’t die. Do you know any tricks like this that will help for the short-term? 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