YAWN...pardon me while I cool my brain...

[jtuck004]

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28240615/

If your head is overheated, there's a good chance you'll yawn soon, according to a new study that found the primary purpose of yawning is to control brain temperature.

...

"Brains are like computers," Andrew Gallup, a researcher in the Department of Biology at Binghamton University who led the study, told Discovery News. "They operate most efficiently when cool, and physical adaptations have evolved to allow maximum cooling of the brain."

....

Contagious yawning is thought to be an evolved mechanism for keeping groups alert so they "remain vigilant against danger," Gallup said.

...

The new findings also explain why tired individuals often yawn, since both exhaustion and sleep deprivation have been shown to increase deep brain temperatures, again prompting a yawn-driven cool down. Yawning additionally appears to facilitate transitional states of the brain, such as going from sleep to waking periods.

[Kerrytravelers]

1. *yawn* Whew. Excuse me. *yawn*

[Skittles]

2. .

[ZeitgeistObserver]

3. Perfect picture!

[cliffordu]

4. Nice family.

Yours??

:rofl:

[Skittles]

6. I WILL KICK CLIFFORDU ASS

YES INDEED

[cliffordu]

7. EYE

love you. YES INDEED.

[apples and oranges]

5. Would my head explode if I couldn't yawn for a long period of time?

Like at a meeting or something?