Tuesday, January 1, 2013

Science story of the week

Why do our eyes blink so often? We need an answer to this question because we blink far more often than is needed for lubrication. So why do we do this?

The answer is that our brains literally switch gears each time we blink. When we're doing something complicated, our brains are in a functional state. For instance, when we're having a conversation, our brains need to keep track of what's being said and what should be said.

But there's another state our brain goes into when we're not doing anything, when we're daydreaming, for instance. Turns out that's the state we slip into for just an instant as we blink. It's a rest period for the brain. Is that wild, or what? In that instant of blinking, our brains go from one state to the other, and back again.

Read the story for additional, fascinating details -- like how this plays into the excessive blinking of liars. Very cool.