Wolter Seuntjens, a forerunner in the stimulating study of chasmology, the study of yawning, once said, “We can send a man to the Moon but we cannot explain this most trivial of acts”. It’s true. An act we do up to 240,000 times in a lifetime has no globally accepted explanation. Even foetuses as young as 11 weeks are at it and yet scientists are still struggling to understand its existence. Innovative research suggests that you yawn in order to cool the brain so it operates more efficiently and keeps you awake, but one of the most intriguing aspects of yawning is how contagious it can be, as watching someone, thinking about it or even reading the word ‘yawn’ can induce the behaviour.

It’s also not just humans who express this nature, chimpanzees and dogs have been found to showcase the rippling effect.

Scientists have linked yawning to herding behaviour from early humans suggesting that we use yawns in order to maintain group alertness. This idea is illustrated by an experiment with paratroopers, as the group all yawned before jumping.

So it seems the uncontrollable urge to copy a yawn may come from an innate, subconscious mechanism connected to how much we empathise with those around us.

So for all of you on the pull tonight, this might provide an innovative way to see if your charms are working, as research proposes that you are more likely to catch a yawn from someone you have feelings for and the phenomenon isn’t commonly found amongst strangers. But don’t get too downhearted if they don’t respond, as approximately only half of adult humans are prone to contagious yawning!

Words: Hayley Williams