如果你的頭腦過(guò)熱，那么很有可能很快就打個(gè)呵欠。根據(jù)一項(xiàng)新的研究表明，打呵欠的主要原因就是控制大腦溫度。
The finding solves several mysteries about yawning, such as why it's most commonly done just before and after sleeping, why certain diseases lead to excessive yawning, and why breathing through the nose and cooling off the forehead often stop yawning.
這項(xiàng)結(jié)論解決的許多關(guān)于呵欠的謎題，比如說(shuō)為什么大多數(shù)呵欠都發(fā)生在睡前或剛睡醒時(shí)，為什么某些疾病會(huì)引起過(guò)多的呵欠，以及為何通過(guò)鼻孔呼吸和冷卻前額通常會(huì)制止呵欠的產(chǎn)生。
The key yawn instigator appears to be brain temperature.
打呵欠最關(guān)鍵的誘因就是大腦的溫度。
"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."
“大腦工作起來(lái)就像是臺(tái)計(jì)算機(jī)，”一名賓厄姆敦大學(xué)生理學(xué)系的研究員，同時(shí)也領(lǐng)導(dǎo)著這項(xiàng)研究的安德魯·蓋洛普告訴Discovery News，“它們?cè)诶鋮s的狀態(tài)下運(yùn)行才能發(fā)揮最大的效率，而機(jī)體適應(yīng)機(jī)制也發(fā)展為最大限度的使大腦冷卻。”
He and colleagues Michael Miller and Anne Clark analyzed yawning in parakeets as representative vertebrates because the birds have relatively large brains, live wild in Australia, which is subject to frequent temperature swings, and, most importantly, do not engage in contagious yawning, as humans and some other animals do.
他和同事邁克爾·米勒，安妮·克拉克將長(zhǎng)尾小鸚鵡作為分析呵欠的脊椎動(dòng)物的代表，因?yàn)檫@種鳥(niǎo)兒擁有相對(duì)而言較大的大腦，并野生在溫度頻繁變化的澳大利亞，最重要的一點(diǎn)是，它們不會(huì)像人和其他動(dòng)物那樣出現(xiàn)呵欠傳染啊
Contagious yawning is thought to be an evolved mechanism for keeping groups alert so they "remain vigilant against danger," Gallup said.
呵欠傳染被認(rèn)為是進(jìn)化出來(lái)用于保持群體的警惕性使群體“在危險(xiǎn)面前保持警覺(jué)，”蓋洛普說(shuō)。
For the study, the scientists exposed parakeets to three different conditions: increasing temperature, high temperature and a moderate control temperature. While the frequency of yawns did not increase during the latter two conditions, it more than doubled when the researchers increased the bird's ambient temperature.
為了完成試驗(yàn)，科學(xué)家們將長(zhǎng)尾小鸚鵡暴露在三種不同的狀況下：溫度上升，持續(xù)高溫和適當(dāng)控制的溫度。但鳥(niǎo)兒們的呵欠在后兩種情況下并沒(méi)有增多，而當(dāng)提升鳥(niǎo)兒周圍的溫度時(shí)，它們的呵欠增加了兩倍多。
A paper on the findings has been accepted for publication in the journal Animal Behavior.
關(guān)于這項(xiàng)結(jié)論的論文已經(jīng)被《動(dòng)物行為》雜志接受出版。
"Based on the brain cooling hypothesis, we suggest that there should be a thermal window in which yawning should occur," Gallup said. "For instance, yawning should not occur when ambient temperatures exceed body temperature, as taking a deep inhalation of warm air would be counterproductive. In addition, yawning when it is extremely cold may be maladaptive, as this may send unusually cold air to the brain, which may produce a thermal shock."
“根據(jù)大腦冷卻假設(shè)，我們認(rèn)為存在一個(gè)氣窗促使呵欠產(chǎn)生，”蓋洛普說(shuō)。“舉個(gè)例子，呵欠在環(huán)境溫度超過(guò)體溫時(shí)不大可能發(fā)生，因?yàn)檫@時(shí)候深吸一口熱空氣只能幫倒忙。另外，在極度寒冷的時(shí)候打呵欠也許不大合適，因?yàn)檫@時(shí)通常會(huì)將冷空氣送到大腦，從而使大腦發(fā)生熱沖擊。”
The parakeets yawned as predicted.
長(zhǎng)尾小鸚鵡們的呵欠和預(yù)測(cè)的一致。
It's now believed yawning operates like a radiator for birds and mammals.
現(xiàn)在他們明白了呵欠對(duì)于鳥(niǎo)類和哺乳類來(lái)說(shuō)起到了散熱器的作用。
If air in the atmosphere is cooler than brain and body temperatures, taking it in quickly cools facial blood that, in turn, cools the brain and may even alter blood flow. Prior studies reveal yawning leads to a heightened state of arousal, so a morning yawn may function somewhat like a cup of coffee in providing a jolt of energy.
如果環(huán)境空氣的溫度比大腦和身體的溫度低，把它快速吸入可以冷卻面部血液，當(dāng)然，也為大腦甚至血液循環(huán)降了溫。先前的實(shí)驗(yàn)揭示呵欠可以產(chǎn)生一種加強(qiáng)的激勵(lì)狀態(tài)，所以早晨的一個(gè)呵欠也許就像一杯醒腦的咖啡那樣提供少許的能量。
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.
這個(gè)新發(fā)現(xiàn)也解釋了為什么疲憊的人經(jīng)常打呵欠，因?yàn)槠诤退邊T乏的出現(xiàn)提升了大腦深度的溫度，所以呵欠降溫再次發(fā)揮作用。呵欠還起到了使大腦狀態(tài)過(guò)度順暢的作用，比如從睡眠狀態(tài)到清醒狀態(tài)切換時(shí)。
Gordon Gallup, Jr., a State University of New York at Albany psychologist, did not work on the study, but, as Andrew Gallup's father, paid close attention to the research. The senior Gallup also happens to be a leading expert on the science of yawning and other widespread evolved traits.
小戈登·蓋洛普是一名來(lái)自位于奧爾巴尼的紐約州立大學(xué)的心理學(xué)家，他并沒(méi)有參與這次研究，但作為安德魯·蓋洛普的父親，他對(duì)這項(xiàng)實(shí)驗(yàn)進(jìn)行了緊密的關(guān)注。巧合的是，老蓋洛普也是一名主持對(duì)呵欠和其他引發(fā)廣泛關(guān)注的特質(zhì)進(jìn)行研究的專家。
"It is interesting to note that instances of excessive yawning in humans may be indicative of brain cooling problems," Gallup, Jr., told Discovery News, pointing out that patients with multiple sclerosis often experience bouts of excessive yawning "and MS involves thermoregulatory dysfunction."
“人們過(guò)多的呵欠也許表明大腦制冷的問(wèn)題，這個(gè)觀點(diǎn)很有意思，”老蓋洛普告訴Discovery News，同時(shí)指出罹患多發(fā)性硬化癥的病人經(jīng)常出現(xiàn)過(guò)多呵欠的癥狀，“而多發(fā)性硬化癥和體溫調(diào)節(jié)功能障礙有關(guān)。”
"Bouts of excessive yawning often precede the onset of seizures in epileptic patients, and predict the onset of headaches in people who suffer from migraines," he added.
“過(guò)多呵欠的癥狀經(jīng)常是癲癇病人病情發(fā)作的先兆，而且可以預(yù)測(cè)頭痛病人偏頭痛的發(fā)作，”他補(bǔ)充道。
In the future, researchers may focus more on brain temperature and its role in diseases and their symptoms. But the new study on yawning changes the popular notion that yawns are mere signs of boredom.
在將來(lái)，研究人員也許會(huì)關(guān)注大腦溫度和它在疾病預(yù)知方面所扮演的角色。但是這項(xiàng)新的關(guān)于呵欠的研究改變了大眾對(duì)呵欠的看法——只不過(guò)是無(wú)聊的表現(xiàn)。
On the contrary, as Gallup said, "yawning more accurately reflects a mechanism that maintains attention, and therefore should be looked at as a compliment!"
與此相反的是，如同蓋洛普所言，“打呵欠更準(zhǔn)確的說(shuō)是反映出維持注意力的機(jī)制，那樣的話對(duì)人打呵欠應(yīng)該看作對(duì)他的贊美才對(duì)！”
聯(lián)系客服
