Why does methanol causes you blindness meanwhile ethanol doesn´t?
343555
Your body has an enzyme called "alcohol dehydrogenase" that oxidizes ethanol into acetaldehyde, and then acetaldehyde dehydrogenaise oxidizes that into acetic acid. Your body metabolizes the acetic acid into carbon dioxide, water, and fats.\n\nWhen methanol is ingested, the alcohol dehydrogenase oxidizes it into formaldehyde, which attacks the optic nerve. The problem is that, when ingested, your body doesn't know what to do with the formaldehyde, so it isn't eliminated by an enzyme.\n\nThe treatment for methanol poisoning is actually to give the patient ethanol, so as to overload the alcohol dehydrogenase with ethanol (competitive inhibition) that it cannot oxidize methanol. Methanol is then released through the kidneys.
903750
nope..your kidneys don't touch alcohol.  That goes straight to the liver for processing.
16409
Methanol, also known as methyl alcohol or wood alcohol, is a chemical compound with chemical formula CH3OH. It is the simplest alcohol, and is a light, volatile, colourless, tasteless, flammable, poisonous liquid with a very faint odor. It is used as an antifreeze, solvent, fuel, and as a denaturant for ethyl alcohol.\n\nMethanol is produced naturally in the anaerobic metabolism of many varieties of bacteria. As a result, there is a small fraction of methanol vapor in the atmosphere. Over the course of several days, atmospheric methanol is oxidized by oxygen by the help of sunlight to carbon dioxide and water.\n\nLarge scale production methods can be found in the sources listed. Small scale production can be achieved through destructive distillation of wood.
140226
ethanol and oil\nwater and chloroform
884207
Alcoholic (Ethanol) fermentation and lactate fermentation. It is so hard to explain verbally so i think you should look at the diagram on this website. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/bv.fcgi?rid=mboc4.figgrp.295
16727
Ethanol is ethyl alcohol, the pharmacologically active part of beer.  It depends on the "proof" of the alcohol.  Pure alcohol is generally not "edible" (or drinkable) because ethanol forms an azeotrope (a mixture that cannot be separated by distillation) when it is ~95% ethanol and 5% water.  The azeotrope is broken by chemicals that are bad for humans, like benzene.
451900
I have the same problem.  \n\nUsually the alcohol isn't the problem.  It may be what additives are in.  Things such as yeast, corn, eggs, molds and sulfites can affect you.  Try drinking something different and see if it still happens.  Then compare the ingredients.\n\nIt also depends on the temperature and what you've been doing previously.  You may not be allergic to alcohol, but your surroundings might trigger something.
1040415
I read a whole book of supposed  instances of spontaneous human combustion, and most of the time it was caused by excess drinking in a hot room or near a fireplace. It kinda makes sense because the amount of alcohol in your blood could cause you to be more flammable. Again, none of this is proven scientifically.
247317
There may be some resistant mammalian cells, but generally 70% ethanol will kill-not because of dehydration, but because the solution will dissolve the lipids in the cell membrane, leaving only the protein scaffolding-thus the cell will completely lose it's ionic and chemical balance.
762086
In Medical terms, it is used for ethanol (alcohol)
463881
Yep I get a massive migraine after drinking alcohol.  I think it shuts something in my system down.  It's just not good to everyone.
423221
Ethane is nonpolar.  Ethanol has a polar hydroxyl group which can form hydrogen bonds with water.
809006
could be caused anything from diabetes, to problems with your liver, to lack of sleep.  over-indulging on alcohol can throw your eyesight out of whack.  or perhaps you simply need glasses.  try a cleansing diet.
427818
Absolutely not. In shock, your tissues are not getting as much oxygen and nutrients as they require. Nothing is happening metabolically to the glucose (sugar) in your blood. Your cells, on the other hand, may be unable to get enough oxygen, and thus may turn the glucose they do have into a waste product called lactate rather than into something that is further usable metabolically (called pyruvate). A buildup of lactate can pose a serious threat, as it can result in acidosis. For more information, check out the Wikipedia article I have referenced below.\n\nAs a side note, that lactate I mentioned is what we humans make when we do not get enough oxygen. However, if you were a yeast, you would indeed make ethanol (the type of alcohol we drink) in the absence of oxygen.
419243
drink to the point you have double vision!
641015
Simple:\n\nEthanol is polar (Formula is CH3CH2OH) the lst OH group make the diference.. because of extensive "hydrogenbonding" property it behaves like polar solvent and  polar solvents dissolves in polar media such as water.\n\nWhere as Heptanol, thoug it is having OH group (CH2(CH2)5-CH2-OH), because of long aliphatic chain, the "Hydrogen bonds" formed by these molecule are weak and rare.\n\nso it behaves as non-polar compare to water\nso it cant dissolve Ethanol
1174414
The engines are designed to run on gasoline which burns a little differently and much dirtier than ethanol. ETOH burns to only CO2 and H2O, very clean. Ethanol can be made easily from any organic material. Corn stalks, wood, petroleum, potatoes, sugar, whatever you have mostly. Crack the large molecles to 2 carbons with an OH attachesd and you have ethanol. Fermentations with yeast are usually the easiest way.