Interesting facts, Why are people ticklish?

Why are people ticklish?

Hi I'm Craig, he he he, and this is Mental Floss on YouTube.

Today, I'm going to answer Tim B's big question, “Why are people ticklish?” No one knows for sure why people are ticklish. But, lucky for us, there are people who study this for a living. Lucky for them too that sounds like a great job. So, I'm going to talk about some of their findings today to tickle your fancy. What's a fancy? Let's get started! OH stop it, oh stop it In 1997, the writers of a study published in the journal “Cognition and Emotion” hypothesized that since people who are tickled laugh, they must already be in a happy mood.

They tested their theory by dividing 72 undergraduates into two groups. One group was shown comedy and Saturday Night Live clips before being tickled. Another group was shown an unfunny video before being tickled. It was probably a Wheezy Waiter video. For their theory to be correct, subjects would have had to laugh more while being tickled after watching the comedy clips.

But, the groups laughed equal amounts. That's science talk for people laugh while being tickled no matter what mood they're in -- meaning the laughter has nothing to do with actually being happy. Tickling was nothing more than a reflex. Another study, done in 2013 at the University of Tuebingen in Germany, found that tickling primarily activates two parts of the brain -- the Rolandic Operculum and the hypothalamus.

The Rolandic Operculum is also stimulated during regular laughter and emotions in general. But, the hypothalamus only activates during tickling, NOT other kinds of laughter. Interestingly, it's the same part of the brain that deals with pain and instincts (like fight or flight).

These two studies show that tickling is a reflex, so it probably evolved over time. We can't know why exactly, but scientists have some theories. According to expert Dr. Glenn Weisfeld (Is he German, what should my accent be?

“The structures of the body that are most vulnerable to tickling are also the ones that are most vulnerable to attack. We may be responsive to tickling because it gives us practice in defending ourselves. The scientists behind the University of Tuebingen study had a similar theory.

They believed that parents began tickling their children to prepare them to defend themselves. That's why I tickle myself, achaaaa! Another possibility comes from the book Laughter: A Scientific Investigation by neuroscientist Robert R. Provine.

He wrote that tickling originated as a form of social bonding. A parent tickles their baby, then the baby laughs in response. The tickling tends to stop when the baby starts to fuss, so the laughter ends. Thanks for watching Mental Floss on YouTube, which is made with the help of all these tickle monsters.

If you have a Big Question of your own that you'd like answered, leave it below in comments. See you next week!

Why are people ticklish? |||щекотливый |||sensitive to touch |||sensíveis Warum sind Menschen kitzelig? ¿Por qué la gente tiene cosquillas? Pourquoi les gens sont-ils chatouilleux ? Perché le persone soffrono il solletico? 人はなぜくすぐったいのか？ Waarom kunnen mensen niet tegen kietelen? Porque é que as pessoas têm cócegas? Почему люди боятся щекотки? İnsanlar neden gıdıklanır? 人为什么怕痒？

Hi I’m Craig, he he he, and this is Mental Floss on YouTube. ||||||||||Ментальная Жвачка|| |||||||||Mental Floss|Mental Floss|| ||Craig||||||||Fio dental|| Ahoj já jsem Craig, he he he, a toto je Mental Floss na YouTube. Merhaba ben Craig, o o ve bu YouTube'da Mental Floss.

Today, I’m going to answer Tim B’s big question, “Why are people ticklish?” No one knows for sure why people are ticklish. ||||||Тима Б.||||||щекотливый||||||||| ||||||||||||くすぐったい|||||||||くすぐったがり ||||||de B||||||||||||||| Bugün, Tim B'nin büyük sorusuna “Ben insanlar neden gıdıklanıyor?” Diye cevaplayacağım. Hiç kimse, neden insanların niçin gıdıklandığını bilmiyor. But, lucky for us, there are people who study this for a living. |||||||||||un(a)| Ale naštěstí pro nás existují lidé, kteří se tím živí. Ama, bizim için şanslı, bunu yaşayan insanlar için çalışan insanlar var. Lucky for them too that sounds like a great job. Onlar için de şanslı, harika bir iş gibi geliyor. So, I’m going to talk about some of their findings today to tickle your fancy. ||||||||||||заинтересовать||заинтересовать вас |||||||||hallazgos|||||tu interés Takže dnes budu mluvit o některých jejich zjištěních, abych polechtal vaši fantazii. Bu yüzden, bugün bazı bulgular hakkında konuşup, hayalini gıdıklamak için konuşacağım. What’s a fancy? ||chique ما هو الهوى؟ Fantezi nedir? Let’s get started! OH stop it, oh stop it In 1997, the writers of a study published in the journal “Cognition and Emotion” hypothesized that since people who are tickled laugh, they must already be in a happy mood. |||||||||||||||||||||||||щекотали||||||||| |||||||||||||||||||||||||faz cócegas||||||||| |||||||||||||||||||hipotetizaron||||||||||||||| OH přestaň, oh přestaň V roce 1997 autoři studie publikované v časopise „Cognition and Emotion“ předpokládali, že jelikož se lidé, kteří jsou polechtáni, smějí, musí mít již šťastnou náladu. OH bunu durdurdu, oh durdu 1997 yılında “Biliş ve Duygu” dergisinde yayınlanan bir araştırmanın yazarları, gıdıklayanların gülmekten beri, mutlu bir ruh hali içinde olmaları gerektiğini öne sürdüler.

They tested their theory by dividing 72 undergraduates into two groups. ||||||студентов бакалавриата||| ||||||estudiantes de pregrado||| ||||||graduandos||| ||||||学部生||| Otestovali svou teorii rozdělením 72 vysokoškoláků do dvou skupin. Teorilerini, 72 lisans öğrencisini iki gruba ayırarak test ettiler. One group was shown comedy and Saturday Night Live clips before being tickled. ||||comedia||Sábado por la noche|Noche|Saturday Night Live|fragmentos||ser| Jedna skupina byla před polechtáním předvedena klipy a klipy z Saturday Night Live. Another group was shown an unfunny video before being tickled. |||||несмешное видео|||| |||||no gracioso|||| |||||sem graça||||cócegas Başka bir grup gıdıklanmadan önce saçma bir video gösterildi. It was probably a Wheezy Waiter video. ||||Скрипучий Уэйтер|| ||||Wheezy Waiter|Wheezy Waiter| ||||Wheezy|| Pravděpodobně se jednalo o video Wheezy Waiter. Muhtemelen bir Wheezy Garson videosu. For their theory to be correct, subjects would have had to laugh more while being tickled after watching the comedy clips. Aby byla jejich teorie správná, subjekty by se musely více smát, zatímco by se po sledování komediálních klipů lechtaly. Teorilerinin doğru olması için, konuların komedi kliplerini izledikten sonra gıdıklanırken daha fazla gülmesi gerekecekti.

But, the groups laughed equal amounts. Skupiny se ale smály stejně. Ancak gruplar eşit miktarda güldüler. That’s science talk for people laugh while being tickled no matter what mood they’re in -- meaning the laughter has nothing to do with actually being happy. To je vědecká řeč pro lidi, kteří se smějí, zatímco jsou lechtáni bez ohledu na to, v jaké náladě jsou - což znamená, že smích nemá nic společného se skutečným šťastím. Bu, insanların ne tür bir ruh halindeyseler ne olursa olsun, gıdıklanırken güldükleri için bilim konuşmasıdır - yani kahkahaların aslında mutlu olmakla ilgisi yoktur. Tickling was nothing more than a reflex. Щекотка|||||| cosquinha|||||| Lechtání nebylo nic jiného než reflex. Another study, done in 2013 at the University of Tuebingen in Germany, found that tickling primarily activates two parts of the brain -- the Rolandic Operculum and the hypothalamus. ||||||||Тюбингенского университета||||||||||||||Роландическая область мозга|Роландическая покрышка|||гипоталамус ||||||||||||||||||||||||||hypothalamus ||||||||||||||||||||||Rolándica|operáculo rolandico||| ||||||||Tübingen||||||||||||||Rolândico|opérculo||| Další studie, která byla provedena v roce 2013 na univerzitě v Tuebingenu v Německu, zjistila, že lechtání primárně aktivuje dvě části mozku - Rolandic Operculum a hypothalamus.

The Rolandic Operculum is also stimulated during regular laughter and emotions in general. ||Роландова заслонка|||||||||| Rolandic Operculum je také stimulován během pravidelného smíchu a emocí obecně. But, the hypothalamus only activates during tickling, NOT other kinds of laughter. Ancak, hipotalamus sadece gıdıklama sırasında aktif değil, başka türlü kahkahalar. Interestingly, it’s the same part of the brain that deals with pain and instincts (like fight or flight). Je zajímavé, že je to stejná část mozku, která se zabývá bolestí a instinkty (jako je boj nebo útěk). İlginç bir şekilde, beynin ağrı ve içgüdüleriyle (dövüş ya da uçuş gibi) ilgilenen aynı kısmı.

These two studies show that tickling is a reflex, so it probably evolved over time. Tyto dvě studie ukazují, že lechtání je reflex, takže se pravděpodobně vyvinulo v průběhu času. Bu iki çalışma gıdıklama işleminin bir refleks olduğunu, bu yüzden muhtemelen zaman içinde geliştiğini göstermektedir. We can’t know why exactly, but scientists have some theories. Tam olarak nedenini bilmiyoruz ama bilim adamlarının bazı teorileri var. According to expert Dr. Glenn Weisfeld (Is he German, what should my accent be? |||||Вайсфельд, немецкий акцент|||||||| ||||Glenn|Weisfeld||||||||

“The structures of the body that are most vulnerable to tickling are also the ones that are most vulnerable to attack. "Struktury těla, které jsou nejvíce náchylné k lechtání, jsou také ty, které jsou nejzranitelnější vůči útoku." “Vücudun gıdıklanmaya karşı en savunmasız olan yapıları, saldırıya karşı en savunmasız olan yapılardır. We may be responsive to tickling because it gives us practice in defending ourselves. Můžeme reagovat na lechtání, protože nám dává praxi bránit se. Gıdıklanmaya duyarlı olabiliriz, çünkü kendimizi savunmada pratik yaparız. The scientists behind the University of Tuebingen study had a similar theory. Vědci, kteří stáli za studií University of Tuebingen, měli podobnou teorii.

They believed that parents began tickling their children to prepare them to defend themselves. Ebeveynlerin çocuklarını kendilerini savunmak için hazırlamak için gıdıklamaya başladıklarına inanmışlardı. That’s why I tickle myself, achaaaa! |||||ахаааа! |||||achaaaa Proto se lechtám, achaaaa! Bu yüzden kendimi gıdıkliyorum, achaaaa! Another possibility comes from the book Laughter: A Scientific Investigation by neuroscientist Robert R. Provine. ||||||||||||||Провайн ||||||||||||||Provine Další možnost pochází z knihy Laugh: A Scientific Investigation od neurologa Roberta R. Provine. Başka bir olasılık da kahkaha: Robert R. Provine'in “Bilimsel İnceleme” adlı kitabından geliyor.

He wrote that tickling originated as a form of social bonding. ||||||||||vínculo social Napsal, že lechtání vzniklo jako forma sociálního propojení. Gıdıklama, bir sosyal bağ biçimi olarak ortaya çıktı. A parent tickles their baby, then the baby laughs in response. ||Щекочет|||||||| ||faz cócegas|||||||| Rodič polechtá své dítě, pak se dítě v reakci zasměje. Bir ebeveyn bebeğini gıdıklıyor, sonra bebek buna karşılık olarak gülüyor. The tickling tends to stop when the baby starts to fuss, so the laughter ends. ||||||||||капризничать|||| ||||||||||se queja|||| Lechtání má tendenci přestat, když se dítě začne rozčilovat, takže smích končí. 赤ちゃんが騒ぎ始めるとくすぐりが止まる傾向があるので、笑いが止まります。 Gıdıklama bebek patlamaya başladığında durmaya eğilimlidir, bu yüzden kahkaha sona erer. Thanks for watching Mental Floss on YouTube, which is made with the help of all these tickle monsters. Děkujeme, že jste sledovali Mental Floss na YouTube, který je vytvořen pomocí všech těchto příšerek. これらすべてのくすぐりモンスターの助けを借りて作成された YouTube の Mental Floss をご覧いただきありがとうございます。 Tüm bu gıdı canavarların yardımıyla yapılan YouTube’daki Zihinsel Ipi’yi izlediğiniz için teşekkür ederiz.

If you have a Big Question of your own that you’d like answered, leave it below in comments. Pokud máte vlastní velkou otázku, na kterou byste chtěli odpovědět, nechte ji níže v komentářích. See you next week!