Pranam Readers’ Digest also can yap at times I believe:
Why do humans yawn? Yawning is a primitive reflex. Most animals yawn, and humans are no exception. Birds, reptiles, mammals, and even some sharks can yawn, and they’re probably asking “why is yawning contagious?” too. Although it’s associated with feeling sleepy, yawning doesn’t only happen when we feel tired. Scientists think that the reason we animals yawn has a lot to do with our brain temperature. Because most members of the animal kingdom share a similar brainstem, humans are as likely to yawn as Komodo dragons, yellow-rumped warblers, or a herd of moose. Previous studies on humans have shown that yawning happens less during the winter, when temperatures are cooler. A nice long yawn brings in air, which your body can use to cool or stabilize your brain temperature. Scientists have observed that people tend to yawn when they’re tired or bored, and they think that it’s because their brains are slowing down due to fatigue or lack of stimulation. When your brain stops firing, its temperature drops. Animals with bigger brains tend to yawn for longer periods of time, perhaps taking in more air to cool a bigger brain. Yawning also compresses the muscles of the face and drives oxygen-rich blood up to the brain. When your cat or dog yawns, they’ll often do a big stretch at the same time. Yawning alone stretches some of your facial muscles, and adding a big stretch of your own wakes your body and brain up through movement and compression of your tissues and muscles. Equally as perplexing as yawning is sneezing—what really happens when you sneeze? Why is yawning contagious? It’s a scientifically proven fact that yawning is contagious, and there are several reasons why. The first is simply tiredness. If you’re not getting enough sleep on the regular, and you can’t stop yourself from yawning at regular intervals, it might be time to check out a guide to deeper sleep. The second has to do with mirrored behavior. Seeing someone else yawn in a boring lecture triggers you to yawn as well because you’re in the same environment, exposed to the same temperature and stimuli (or lack thereof). As social animals, we are inclined to mimic others’ actions if we think they will also benefit us, or to create social bonds. There are other behaviors that fall into this category too, like laughing or scratching. It all comes from our ancient brainstem! Another study even showed that students with more empathy were more likely to yawn after seeing another person yawn, although that doesn’t necessarily mean that you’re non-empathetic if you don’t catch a yawn too easily. Yawning is contagious, but you could just be well-rested! KR IRS 19721 -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Thatha_Patty" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to thatha_patty+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/thatha_patty/CAL5XZork6Fq_ErpbGk-SvdtWto193PvNQL9o8zQYqtYgL9qESw%40mail.gmail.com.
