"I have always loved the ocean. I find that even as dangerous as the
turbulent waters can be, it's my happy place and now I know why. In a pair
of studies, Richard Coss, professor emeritus of psychology, and a former
student, Craig Keller (B.A., psychology, `09), measured the heart rated
and blood pressure of people afther they gazed at different outdoor
scences for one minute, 40 seconds at a time."
"In the first study, 32 participants showed reduced average heart rate and
lower blood presure after looking at a swimming pool than they did after
viewing a tree in a parking lot or a stree sign. The second round of 73
people visited a series of sites along the UC Davis Arboretum. Blood
pressure and heart rate, on average, were lower when participants looked a
thte Arboretum waterway than when they viewed the adjacent ground."