Yawn Duration Hypothesis
Researchers in New York watched lots of YouTube videos of yawning animals, and timed the length of their yawns. Based on this they were able to rank species by yawn length. Humans came in first, followed by camels, and then dogs. Mice were at the bottom of the list.
Why do some species yawn longer than others? The researchers theorize that yawn duration correlates to brain size. The bigger the brain, the longer the yawn — which would support the theory that the purpose of yawning is to cool the brain.
However, the researchers caution that their findings are only provisional, because apparently they couldn't find enough yawning animal videos on YouTube to conduct a full study.
More info: Science Alert, metro.co.uk
Why do some species yawn longer than others? The researchers theorize that yawn duration correlates to brain size. The bigger the brain, the longer the yawn — which would support the theory that the purpose of yawning is to cool the brain.
However, the researchers caution that their findings are only provisional, because apparently they couldn't find enough yawning animal videos on YouTube to conduct a full study.
More info: Science Alert, metro.co.uk
Comments
Hmmm, wouldn't it be more likely that there was a correlation btwn duration and lung capacity?
Posted by John Romero on 10/09/16 at 01:46 PM
Commenting is not available in this channel entry.
Category: