Neural Dust: Tiny Wireless Sensors That Monitor Brain and Body

Explaining complex science in easy and interesting ways for curious minds of all ages.
Have you ever felt a sudden chill and noticed tiny bumps on your skin? These small bumps are called goosebumps. But what actually causes them?
Goosebumps appear when the tiny muscles located at the base of each hair follicle—called arrector pili muscles—contract. This contraction causes the hair to stand upright, resulting in the skin around each follicle being pulled up into a bump. This reaction is a part of the body’s automatic response system known as the autonomic nervous system.
There are two main reasons why we get goosebumps:
While humans no longer rely on body hair for warmth or intimidation, the goosebumps response remains a fascinating leftover from our evolutionary past.
Next time you get goosebumps, remember—it’s your body’s way of reacting to the world around you, just like it did thousands of years ago!
Comments
Post a Comment