It seems to me that what your link establishes is that reality can get complicated. It is primarily devoted to explaining the challenges involved in even defining "heat-related death".
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Dry heat vs humid heat
- Thread starter Travis
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- heat index heat waves
Ron_Tomkins
Satan's Helper
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Well, I'm not surprised the verdict is that dry anything (heat or cold) is definitely better.
Damien Evans
Up The Irons
Say what? I've literally never seen a home without air conditioning in it. The only building at all I can remember staying in that might possibly not have had it was a ski chalet in the high country.
Ziggurat
Penultimate Amazing
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Then you lead a very coddled life. Even in the US there are lots of homes without AC (I spent about five years in an apartment that had none), but more importantly, most of the world does not, including many tropical countries. Where do you think the AC unit is on this thing?
arthwollipot
Limerick Purist Pronouns: He/Him
13% of 113.6 million is still "lots of homes".
Comparatively, no. I'd accept 87% as an overwhelming majority any day of the week.
This^^^^^^^^^^^ (Yeh ninjaed me - well done!!!). In the current financial/jobs situation, I suspect there are also a number of homes with AC that is not working brcause they cannot afford that electricity OR can't afford repairs on it...
rustypouch
Philosopher
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I'd be surprised if 13% of homes around here have AC.
Like most others, I'd rather be dry.
Like most others, I'd rather be dry.
On Planet Earth.
Edited to add....
For most people in India, China, Africa, heck even Europe air-conditioning is either something you never encounter or only encounter in a minority of public buildings.
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Ziggurat
Penultimate Amazing
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15 million homes isn't a lot? I think that counts as a lot. I never said "most", and for a reason. Plus, the original claim wasn't specific to the US.
I didn't realize this was up for debate. Water in the air = less sweat evaporating from your body.
I would think that heat transfer (from your body to the air) is also slower in humid air.
And you campers complaining about Ohio or New York's humidity don't know what hot and humid is. Come hang down in the ATL and see how you feel. You get out of the shower and simply never dry off.
New York is uncomfortable in the summer, but I suspect that has more to do with the relative attitude than the relative humidity.
I would think that heat transfer (from your body to the air) is also slower in humid air.
And you campers complaining about Ohio or New York's humidity don't know what hot and humid is. Come hang down in the ATL and see how you feel. You get out of the shower and simply never dry off.
New York is uncomfortable in the summer, but I suspect that has more to do with the relative attitude than the relative humidity.
You sure they're not just paraphrasing Hudson from Aliens?
Dancing David
Penultimate Amazing
As one of my friends said "The dry heaves aren't fun either"
Have lived with both, dry heat can be dangerous, just less miserable.
Have lived with both, dry heat can be dangerous, just less miserable.
Red Baron Farms
Philosopher
Purposely so. I just wanted to see if people would think past their personal comfort levels to what is actually worse.
Dry heat is worse. That's why you have deserts sand dust bowl fire etc. Dry heat kills.
Humid heat is better. That's why you have jungle Everglades Amazon bayou etc.... Humid heat brings life in over abundance.
Humidity might not be comfortable, but I'll take it any day.
TubbaBlubba
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I've been in Sahara and Nevada with temperatures over 40C, maybe 45 at most. It wasn't too bad.
However, 30-32C here where I live, on an island, is HORRIBLE. Same goes for cold - -30C in Northern Sweden isn't too bad, but even -10C here is horrid, -17C (a typical "coldest day of the year" here) or so feels like death. I understand it's because underchilled water sticks to you and takes your heat.
I've also been on the Manhattan in July. Probably around 40C - I never checked. That was really bad as well, but actually not much worse than the 30-32C the summers often give us here.
However, 30-32C here where I live, on an island, is HORRIBLE. Same goes for cold - -30C in Northern Sweden isn't too bad, but even -10C here is horrid, -17C (a typical "coldest day of the year" here) or so feels like death. I understand it's because underchilled water sticks to you and takes your heat.
I've also been on the Manhattan in July. Probably around 40C - I never checked. That was really bad as well, but actually not much worse than the 30-32C the summers often give us here.
The o/p was about people, not the biodiversity of rainforests.
But while on that subject, I've never noticed large populations of humans in such places even when there is vast room for population expansion. Point is they're terrible places for human societies as they don't lend themselves to agriculture. If you want to lead a hunter-gatherer existence then it's a different matter.