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Twirls, Whirls, Spins, & Turns: The Science & Reflexes of Dizziness

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Abstract

Tilt-A-Whirls, Merry-Go-Rounds, Spinning Tea Cups...does just the thought of them make you dizzy? Why should something so fun make our heads spin so long even after the ride has stopped? Learn about spins, turns, and the mixed signals that fire in our brains when the sensation of dizziness takes over. Weak stomachs, beware. This project has tests that will make your head spin!

Summary

Areas of Science
Difficulty
 
Time Required
Very Short (≤ 1 day)
Prerequisites
None
Material Availability
Readily available
Cost
Very Low (under $20)
Safety
Minor injury possible
Credits

Darlene E. Jenkins, Ph.D.

This project is based on a DragonflyTV episode.

Objective

The goal of this project is to use spin tests to discover how important your eyes and ears are in balance and dizziness.

Introduction

In the DragonflyTV video (see Bibliography), two talented young figure skaters, Eliot and Rhianna, wondered why some turns and spins in their routines made them more dizzy than others. They knew from experience that "spotting" with their eyes at a fixed point while turning usually helped keep them steady and made them less dizzy than when they let their focus rotate with their heads. So visual cues while turning seemed to be important for maintaining balance and equilibrium.

But what about when they were spinning so fast that spotting was not possible? Is it still important to have their eyes open to keep from getting dizzy, or could they do just as well with their eyes closed when executing impressively fast spins? And would placing their head down or up make matters worse or better? They decided to run some scientific tests to find out.

Check out the project video to see what Eliot and Rhianna learned. Then read on to see how you can set up your own investigation. While you may not have the skills of a competitive figure skater, you still can do your own tests on spinning in this project. And you won't need an Olympic-sized ice skating rink to do them. A simple, fast-spinning office chair and a room with some open space will do the trick. While there's no guarantee you won't get pretty dizzy in these tests, this project will help you understand the important links among your eyes, ears, brain, and body for maintaining balance or causing dizziness.

The body's key balancing and equilibrium center lies within the ear and is known as the vestibular system. It is a collection of inner ear structures close to—but independent from—those that amplify and transmit sounds to the brain. Rather than sound, the inner ear's vestibular system conveys information about motion and position. This system tells us, even when our eyes are closed, if we are standing tall or balancing on our head, leaning forward or leaning backwards, leaping up or falling down.

Sensation of motion primarily comes from a series of fluid-filled tubes within the vestibular system called the semicircular canals. These small, enclosed loops embedded within both sides of the skull help us sense the direction, angle, and speed we are moving whether we're going up, down, forward, backwards, or turning in circles. The semicircular canals detect motion using the fluid inside the canals and microscopic hair-like nerve endings that line the inner surface of the canals. When we are sitting still, the fluid and hairs are basically at rest. When we begin a motion like a turn, the liquid begins to sway inside the loops and triggers the hairs to send nerve signals to regions of the brain that recognize and interpret the initial motion. As we continue to turn, as in a series of rapids spins, the fluid picks up speed (angular momentum) within the canals and, because of inertia, continues to move and send signals to the brain even after we have come to an abrupt stop.

That's when the sensation of feeling dizzy begins. It's explained by a clash of conflicting information coming into your brain from your eyes, inner ear, and specialized nerve endings in your muscles and skin. Your eyes and limbs are telling it one thing (I've stopped spinning or turning), while the fluid in the semicircular canals is telling the brain something different (I'm still going around). It's the same reaction that occurs when someone gets sea sick or motion sickness. In these examples, the eyes are fixed on a relatively immobile spot like the deck of a boat or the inside of a car. So the eyes are not sensing the shifts of motion that the inner ear is detecting every time the boat hits a swell or the car leans into a curve. Your brain finds these mixed signals disorienting, and soon the message becomes very clear that you'll have to settle the sensory dispute or risk an upset stomach.

In the video, Eliot and Rhianna linked the dizziness they felt after rapid spins to a curious observation of their eyes. Their coach noticed that the skaters' eyes would jiggle back and forth for a short time right after they stopped their spins. This is a reflex action of the eyes called vestibular nystagmus. These natural and uncontrollable eye "jiggles" are linked to the continued signals from the semicircular canals after the body stops moving.

The eyes naturally try to stay focused forward whether we are moving or not. As we turn, the eyes automatically shift their focus to a new point directly in front of the body. The eye jiggles of vestibular nystagmus appear after spinning because the semicircular canals are still telling the brain you are turning, so the eyes reflexively keep searching for a focal point that, according to misinformation from the canals, appears to be constantly moving. The jerky eye motions don't stop until the fluid in the canals comes to rest some seconds after motion has ceased.

In this project, you'll observe and time the eye movements of vestibular nystagmus in volunteers after spinning them in a rotating chair. You can record the eye movements with a video camera like the two skaters did in the video, or simply watch the volunteer's eyes and use a stop watch to time how long the shifting eye motions last. You'll set up spin tests to see if the time that the eyes jiggle correlates to how dizzy a volunteer feels after spinning. In other tests you'll explore the effects of slow versus fast stops on dizziness and the relationship between visual and auditory cues to the directional sense of motion.

Before you get started, do some background research on the topics of spins, nystagmus, the inner ear, and the vestibular system. See a list of search terms, basic questions, and a list of useful websites in the next section. Then recruit a few friends—presumably those with strong stomachs—spin those chairs, and make your observations. You might be amazed at the connections you'll find between the eyes and ears when it comes to motion and dizziness.

Who knew spinning could be so much fun and a valuable science lesson too!

Terms and Concepts

To do this project, you should do research that enables you to understand the following terms and concepts:

Questions

Bibliography

Here are some websites you might want to check out as you start your research:

  • Basic anatomy and function of the ear and inner ear:
    KidsHealth Staff. (n.d.). Your Ears. The Nemours Foundation. Retrieved August 18, 2014.
  • Excellent NASA informational and activity site devoted to the vestibular system and sensations of motions; this project was based, in part, on activities described in this site:
    NASA. (2004, February 26). Human Vestibular System in Space. NASA Education. Retrieved August 18, 2014.
  • Description of momentum, including angular momentum:
    Carr, K. (n.d.). Momentum. Portland State University. Retrieved August 18, 2014.
  • Physics introduction to inertia and mass:
    Physics Classroom. (n.d.). Inertia and Mass. Retrieved May 16, 2023.
  • The idea for this project came from this DragonflyTV podcast:
    TPT, 2006. Ice Skating by Eliot and Rhiana. DragonflyTV, Twin Cities Public Television. Retrieved July 13, 2007.

Materials and Equipment

To do this experiment you will need the following materials and equipment:

Note: For ISEF-affiliated science fairs, studies involving human subjects require prior approval. For more information, see Projects Involving Human Subjects.

Experimental Procedure

General Instructions

  1. Decide who will be spun in the chair first. One other person should be designated as the "observer." The observer will be in charge of the stop watch or video camera, if you are using one. Two other people will act as the "spinners" of the chair. These roles can be switched as each person takes their turn being spun in the chair.
  2. Make sure no furniture or obstacles are near or around the chair.
  3. For each test, have the volunteer sit down in the chair, insert the ear plugs, put their hands in their laps, and close their eyes. They should keep their eyes closed during each test and not open them until the observer says so. Ear plugs should also be worn during the test unless the volunteer is told to take them off.
  4. Ask the volunteer to make two fists with their thumbs straight up and keep their hands in this position on their thighs during each test. Using their thumbs, they should indicate the direction they feel they are moving while they are spinning with their eyes closed. Immediately after they stop spinning, while their eyes remain closed the volunteer should use their thumbs to again indicate if they feel they are moving to the right, left, or not at all (thumbs straight up).
  5. At the end of each spin test, ask the volunteer to remain seated, open their eyes, and look directly into the camera or at the designated observer.
  6. The observer should note or film any eye movements, time how long they last, and record which direction the eyes are moving, if they are moving at all.
  7. Each spin test should be done three times by each volunteer.
  8. If a volunteer feels very dizzy after a test, let him/her sit in a non-moving chair for a few minutes before trying the next test. If a volunteer begins to feel sick at any time, he/she should stop all tests.

Test 1: Spin with gradual stop

  1. Have the first volunteer sit in the chair and keep their eyes closed during the test. They should also put in the ear plugs so they don't receive any auditory cues.
  2. The two spinners should start spinning the chair at medium/fast speed counterclockwise. Make sure the volunteer does not fall out of the chair by gently touching just the back of the chair to spin it and by keeping the pushes smooth and consistent, not jerky.
  3. Note and record the position of the volunteer's thumbs during and right after the test.
  4. After about 5 to 10 medium to fast spins, let the chair slow down a bit and help it slow down further by catching the chair lightly so it comes to a gradual stop.
  5. When the chair stops, ask the volunteer to open their eyes and record or film any eye movements.
  6. Ask the volunteer to describe how dizzy they feel. Have them rank their dizziness using a numerical system such as 1–5, with 1 = slightly dizzy and 5 = extremely dizzy.
  7. Have the volunteer repeat this test two more times, and record the results.
  8. Repeat the procedure with the remaining three volunteers.

Test 2: Spin with quick stop

  1. Have the first volunteer sit in the chair and close their eyes. They should have the ear plugs in their ears.
  2. Start spinning the chair at a medium/fast speed as in the first test.
  3. Note and record the position of the volunteer's thumbs during and right after the test.
  4. After about five to ten spins, the two spinners should catch the chair and stop it quickly. They should "spot" the volunteer so that he/she doesn't tip forward or fall out of the chair when it stops.
  5. Immediately after the stop, notice and record the observations of eye movements and dizziness as in the first test.
  6. Have the volunteer repeat this test two more times, and record the results.
  7. Repeat the procedure with the remaining three volunteers.

Test 3: Spin with quick stop; eyes open and ears not plugged

  1. Have the first volunteer sit in the chair, not wear any ear plugs, and keep their eyes open during this test.
  2. Repeat the spinning test, with a quick stop as in Test 2.
  3. Note and record the position of the volunteer's thumbs during and right after the test.
  4. Immediately after the stop, notice and record the observations of eye movements and dizziness as in the first and second tests.
  5. Have the volunteer repeat this test two more times, and record the results.
  6. Repeat the procedure with the remaining three volunteers.

Analyzing Your Data

  1. Prepare a separate data table for each test. See the data table for a guideline. In each table, record the thumb signals, eye movement times, eye movement directions, and dizziness ratings for all volunteers.
    Test Number: ___ Volunteer 1 Volunteer 2 Volunteer 3 Volunteer 4
    Thumb Direction (During)                        
    Thumb Direction (After)                        
    Eye Movement Time (sec)                        
    Eye Direction                        
    Dizziness Rating (1-5)                        
  2. Total the three eye movement times of each volunteer, and calculate the average eye movement times for each volunteer for all tests.
  3. Calculate the average "dizziness ratings" for each volunteer in each test.
  4. Prepare a bar chart showing the average results of each volunteer next to each other for Test 1, 2, and 3.
  5. What differences do you see between Test 1, 2, and 3 in average eye movement times for each volunteer? Do all the volunteers have similar results or are there some differences?
  6. What differences do you see between Test 1, 2, and 3 in average dizziness ratings for each volunteer? Are the results the same for all volunteers?
  7. How do the directions the eyes move compare between Test 1, 2, and 3 for each volunteer? Are the results the same for all volunteers?
  8. How do the thumb signals compare between Test 1, 2, and 3 for each volunteer? Are the results the same for all volunteers?
  9. What effect, if any, did having their eyes open and ears unplugged have on the volunteers' eye movements and dizziness ratings at the end of test 3?
  10. For help with data analysis and setting up tables, see Data Analysis & Graphs.
  11. For a guide on how to summarize your results and write conclusions based on your data, see Conclusions.
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Ask an Expert

Do you have specific questions about your science project? Our team of volunteer scientists can help. Our Experts won't do the work for you, but they will make suggestions, offer guidance, and help you troubleshoot.

Global Connections

The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDGs) are a blueprint to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all.

This project explores topics key to Good Health and Well-Being: Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages.

Variations

  • Does experience matter? Try these tests with a volunteer who is experienced with spinning motions like an ice skater, gymnast, diver, or dancer. Compare their results with another athlete who doesn't practice spinning or turning on a regular basis in their sport (soccer, track, football, baseball, etc). Research the ability of the vestibular system to adapt to repeated spinning in sports. Find out if the vestibular system adapts in other situations like sailors getting used to ocean travel or astronauts adjusting to floating in the microgravity conditions of space travel.
  • Effect on balance. Repeat these experiments and ask the volunteers to stand up and walk straight ahead right after each test. Measure the distance they walk and note the direction(s) they travel. Be sure to have someone spot them as they walk. Try doing this test with and without a long piece of tape on the floor for the volunteers to look at as they try to walk. Research how visual cues after spinning may influence dizziness and sense of balance.
  • Dizzy to the Extreme. For volunteers who don't get too dizzy on the original tests, you can ask them to try changing their head position while spinning in the chair for Test 1 (gradual stop). Have them put their head down for one test and back for another. They should grip the handles of the chair, keep their eyes closed, and wear ear plugs during both tests. Be sure to have spotters close to the volunteers when the chair stops. Record your observations and compare them with the results from your original tests. Research the function and orientation of the semicircular canals to help explain the results from these tests.
  • For an idea of another project using a spinning chair to study angular momentum, see the Science Buddies project idea suggestion: Skating and Angular Momentum

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General citation information is provided here. Be sure to check the formatting, including capitalization, for the method you are using and update your citation, as needed.

MLA Style

Science Buddies Staff. "Twirls, Whirls, Spins, & Turns: The Science & Reflexes of Dizziness." Science Buddies, 17 May 2023, https://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/project-ideas/HumBio_p012/human-biology-health/reflexes-of-dizziness. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

APA Style

Science Buddies Staff. (2023, May 17). Twirls, Whirls, Spins, & Turns: The Science & Reflexes of Dizziness. Retrieved from https://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/project-ideas/HumBio_p012/human-biology-health/reflexes-of-dizziness


Last edit date: 2023-05-17
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