Obviously they've never seen the Mr. Wizard's World episode where they ate upside down.
this post was submitted on 10 Apr 2026
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Memory unlocked. https://youtu.be/bC6jJnVe1LI?t=16m28s
I feel like there was another episode covering this where they had them try to drink upside down, or am I mistaken?
I'm too lazy to find it now, but one of the tests they tried long before NASA started sending people into space was eating a banana upside down where they figured out the digestive tract can function against gravity.
There was also an encyclopedia brown story about this in which I remember Geese and Ducks rely on gravity to swallow, therefore they wouldn't be able to eat in space.
They let that smarmy know it all shit into space? Bugs Meaney should have just kicked his ass.
good question actually, the esophagus can squeeze things towards the stomach without gravity's help.
It’s even cooler than that: The esophagus can squeeze things towards the stomach against gravity. You can drink water while hanging upside down. You’ll also get a nose full of water because your sinuses would be below your mouth… But once it’s in your throat and you’re swallowing, it’ll make it to your stomach just fine.
If you wanted to avoid the sinus problem, I guess you could just lay on your back on a steep incline. Not fully upside down, so your sinus cavity is still above your mouth. That way the water would hit the back of your throat where you could swallow it, instead of just draining straight into your sinuses.
If you slowly inhale through your nose while drinking the pressure from the air coming in will likely direct the water towards your esophagus as well as keeping water out of your nasal cavity.
what!? i can clearly remember being like 10 hanging upside down from my knees on a jungle gym and drinking water from a bottle and having no problem at all and proving my mom that i wouldnt choke doing that
A quick swallow, maybe? (I'm thinking small mouthfuls)
nah, i always chugged down water, liked the way i felt the water slosh on my stomach xD
Yeah, keep posing this images, don't complain when Freezer attacks looking for the other 7 balls
Don't worry, Goku will save us. Well, some of us. When he eventually gets here, after the Z warriors have been beaten up.
Or if we're lucky a new strong character will one shot him as his introduction.
Oh that's interesting, I wonder if it's easier to get heartburn in space? It's common to need to sit upright to keep the acid down.
What would a bee do in zero gravity?
Probably bee things
Beelieve or not, fly.
A video of a bee in microgravity. https://youtu.be/SF-IuZwVWMU
That was underwhelming. Thank you anyway.
This was legitimately a significant concern that early space programs had. Like, how well would people be able to swallow in free fall, would certain kinds of food cause problems? The food experiments during the Gemini program are pretty interesting
I don’t know about you guys, but I just open my throat straight down to my stomach and pour the food in.
Baby bird style
I think there was a science experiments book for kids that dared me to drink water from a glass upside down through a straw while hanging from monkey bars or something. It was meant to show how our body deliberately moves food towards the stomach instead of solely relying on gravity, but instead it showed that I my legs were too weak.
A shame these experiments are deemed to dangerous nowadays and people have to show their ignorance online, simply because the new metal straws have pierced the brains of anyone who did them.
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Swallowing is a mechanical action done with your muscles; that's how astronauts can eat and how you can eat or drink upside down if you were really wanting to.
Saw someone drinking a whole beer from a funnel while being being held upside down. People do this and I basically die when drinking a sip of water while lying in bed.
Maybe the issue is that you're too horizontal? Try doing a handstand first.
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Ever heard of a kegstand?
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Can you swallow things when you're laying flat? I imagine swallowing food in space would be no more difficult.
You can swallow things while dangling upside down. The esophagus is strong enough to work against gravity.
But liquids are a little bit more difficult, because they tend to flow in unexpected places in the mouth/sinuses/nose before trying to swallow.
Once I had to drink barium while being tilted upside down on a big table while they watched it with X-rays… apparently that’s a medical test lol I didn’t find it anymore difficult than drinking normally personally but it has to do with the strength of your swallow most of all, which is what they were testing at the time.
We get it, you're good at swallowing
Hey wyd Saturday night
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Persistalsis
This is the kind of question that fuels science.
I've just realised that because of my esophageal dysmotility I wouldn't be able to eat in space.
Is this a writing prompt about being left behind on a dying earth because you'd starve on your voyage to Mars?
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Keith is a bird.
I have no proof but neither doubts
Some poor soul has never watched Bill Nye the Science Guy... what has the world come too... D:
Most of the non-English speaking world hasn't seen him as kids. I don't remember where I learned about peristalsis, but I grew up just fine.
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