weight poll

[Aliantha]

I bet his head doesn't weigh as much as he thinks it does. lol

[ZenGum]

Originally Posted by Aliantha

I bet his head doesn't weigh as much as he thinks it does. lol

Agreed. 40 pounds ... 18kg ... surely not. mediocre "big head" comments aside.

Given that the human body has slightly less density than water, this gives us various ways to approximate the weight of various parts based on their volume.

Easiest is to find a container of water that is about the same size as the body part, in this case, LJ's head. I'm thinking of 4 liter (roughly, gallon) containers as being pretty close to a human head. So we are looking at 4 or 5 kilograms, 10 to 12 pounds.

Also consider that typical human brain capacity is about 1300 to 1400 ccs, 1.3 to 1.4 liters. Roughly triple that (since lots of the head isn't brain) and again we are approaching 4 liters, 4 kilograms, 10 pounds.

If we want to go to greater lengths we could do an Archimedes type measurement. LJ gets into a large bath with just his head above the water, marks water level, submerges head, marks water level, calculates volume displaced, multiply by density of body... but then we have to allow for the hollow places in the head: mouth, sinus, ears etc.

I guess the scales thing would be easier. Please do it LJ, now I am itching to know.

[TheMercenary]

Originally Posted by ZenGum

Agreed. 40 pounds ... 18kg ... surely not. mediocre "big head" comments aside.

Given that the human body has slightly less density than water, this gives us various ways to approximate the weight of various parts based on their volume.

Easiest is to find a container of water that is about the same size as the body part, in this case, LJ's head. I'm thinking of 4 liter (roughly, gallon) containers as being pretty close to a human head. So we are looking at 4 or 5 kilograms, 10 to 12 pounds.

Also consider that typical human brain capacity is about 1300 to 1400 ccs, 1.3 to 1.4 liters. Roughly triple that (since lots of the head isn't brain) and again we are approaching 4 liters, 4 kilograms, 10 pounds.

If we want to go to greater lengths we could do an Archimedes type measurement. LJ gets into a large bath with just his head above the water, marks water level, submerges head, marks water level, calculates volume displaced, multiply by density of body... but then we have to allow for the hollow places in the head: mouth, sinus, ears etc.

I guess the scales thing would be easier. Please do it LJ, now I am itching to know.

It might be easier to just lay on a table with the head hanging off the side and the neck in a completely relaxed mode and limp. Place an electronic scale under the head and lift it till it is in a completely neutral position in line with the neck. That should give you a fairly close estimate.

Or you could look here:
http://danny.oz.au/anthropology/note...ad-weight.html

And then we have the complete in depth discussion by people who have already started thinking about the issue:

http://ask.metafilter.com/36836/Head-Weight

[ZenGum]

Originally Posted by TheMercenary

http://ask.metafilter.com/36836/Head-Weight

Great Link Merc.
I had realized that decapitation won't work because the blood loss would reduce the weight.

I think they have the solution:
"I think the solution probably involves being hung by your heels from a spring-scale with your head in a vat of liquefied heads to achieve neutral head buoyancy, and then subtracting the reading on the spring-scale from the known weight of your entire body." (from Dersins, user at the site Merc links to).

Brilliant! And I reckon we can get a grant to do it, and pass it off as performance art!

Although I am still concerned about the empty spaces in your mouth, nostrils, and ears. So you'd have to keep your mouth open in the vat of liquefied heads and let all that gooey goodness flow up your nose and into your ears...

Hope no one's eating as they read this.

LJ, please do the scale thing. I do have a big vat of liquefied heads, but I don't have a spring scale. You're my only hope...

[ZenGum]

I just realized decapitation could work, provided you froze the subject to death (while lying down so as a reasonable amount of blood remains in the head) then removed the head and weighed it, including the frozen blood.

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