Sunday, December 28, 2008
Science The Science of Yawning
Posted by Charles Mudede on Sun, Dec 28, 2008 at 2:50 PM
The conclusion of an article on yawning...
The authors conclude that their results support the idea that yawning helps cooling the brain. “Brains are like computers. They operate most efficiently when cool, and physical adaptations have evolved to allow maximum cooling of the brain.”
Cooling effectIn effect, yawning operates like a radiator in an air-cooled engine. Gaping of the mouth and deep inhalation during a yawn cools the circulating blood, dilates the vessels and dissipates heat through emissary veins. A yawn is thus a thermoregulator.
While this research supports the idea of the yawn being a brain-cooling mechanism, it does not answer why it is contagious. Why when you yawn, I too (indeed even your pet dog) do so?
The researcher Andrew Gallup’s father, Gordon suggests that mirror neurons might hold a clue. This is the explanation suggested for why monkeys ape and mimic us.
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6
Many in the animal kingdom use yawning to display their arsenal of weapons. A warning you are about to suffer a possible bite.
7
@4 and 5: I read somewhere that yawning is a quick way of getting oxygen into your system and getting rid of unwanted carbon dioxide as you exhale. Normal breathing, of course, does this, but if you are tired your rate of breathing slows down. No problem if you are intentionally trying to fall asleep but if you are trying to keep awake yawning may be a subconscious way of getting the quick jolt you need to get home from that boring party without nodding off behind the wheel.
No idea why yawning is contagious, but if the mere sight of another person yawning can trigger a similar reaction there must be some psychological component to it.
Can Jonathan Golob or any other scientists out there confirm the above?
No idea why yawning is contagious, but if the mere sight of another person yawning can trigger a similar reaction there must be some psychological component to it.
Can Jonathan Golob or any other scientists out there confirm the above?
8
Is it possible that heat/boredom/whatever might be a shared experience in a specific environment? Who 'a thunk it? Fopr example, I don't recall ever being triggered to yawn when a character does so in a movie.
11
@7 touches on yawns reason for being contagious. When a hunter umpteen thousand years ago was preparing to chase his prey he might yawn to oxygenate his blood and increase his chances of making a kill. Any fellow hunters would be wise to do the same and evolution would select for those who yawn when others do -- they got the meat.
16
yawns are not contagious, but merely a sign of social empathy in the [contagious] yawnee:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/natur…
xx
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/natur…
xx
17
Pure nonsense. If yawning is a sign of refreshing/cooling the brain in preparation for more vigorous engagement, why does it always precede sleep? If it is a sign of being alert, how does the usual end result of yawning, sleep, can be construed as more alertness. When we awake from sleep, commonly considered a time of rest for the brain, one of the first things we do is yawn. Is sleep not what we thought it is, a time of rest for the brain, or yawning has nothing to do with tiredness of the brain? Science has now started to acknowledge more and more that sleep is far from being a restful state for the mind. In fact, the opposite. The brain is more engaged and more active during sleep, via dreams. May be yawning has nothing to do with brain function, but the function of the body? We start yawning when the body has been in static position for a while. May be yawning is the body asserting itself over the mind saying, 'stop jelly stuff, my time now'. That's probably why we want to be still for a while after waking from sleep. Take your time getting out of bed. Disengage the brain for a while at least when you’re awake. While you’re sleep, the brain is an autopilot, and even perhaps hijacked.
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