SE-Ed: Why Do We Get Goosebumps?

Have you ever stepped outside on a freezing morning?

你有沒有在寒冷刺骨的早晨走出家門過？

Suddenly, your arms are covered in tiny bumps!

突然，你的手臂上冒出了許多小疙瘩！

The same thing can happen during a sad film,

看悲傷的電影時也可能這樣，

or when your favourite song starts to play.

或者當你最喜歡的歌響起時。

We call them goosebumps. But what are they, exactly?

我們管它叫雞皮疙瘩。但它到底是什麼呢？

Every hair on your body grows out of a tiny tube.

你身上的每一根毛髮，都是從一根微小的管子裡長出來的。

At the bottom of each one, there's a very small muscle.

每根管子的底部都有一塊非常小的肌肉。

When you get cold, this muscle suddenly tightens.

當你感到冷時，這塊肌肉會突然收緊。

It pulls the hair straight up,

它把毛髮拉得直立起來，

and it pushes up the skin around it too.

同時也把周圍的皮膚頂起來。

Thousands of tiny bumps appear at the same time!

成千上萬個小疙瘩同時冒了出來！

In English, we say our skin looks like a goose's.

英語裡，人們說我們的皮膚像鵝皮。

In French, Spanish and Vietnamese, it's chicken skin!

而在法語、西班牙語和越南語裡，它叫雞皮！

Either way, a bird's skin has the very same bumps.

無論哪種說法，鳥的皮膚上都有一模一樣的小疙瘩。

So why do our bodies do this at all?

那麼，我們的身體為什麼會這樣呢？

Scientists think the answer is millions of years old.

科學家認為，答案要追溯到幾百萬年前。

Our early ancestors had much thicker hair than we do.

我們早期的祖先，毛髮比我們濃密得多。

When their fur stood up, it trapped a layer of warm air.

當牠們的毛豎起來時，就能鎖住一層暖空氣。

It worked like a free winter coat!

就像一件免費的冬衣！

Sadly, we've lost most of that hair,

可惜，我們已經失去了大部分毛髮，

so goosebumps don't keep us very warm today.

所以如今起雞皮疙瘩已經沒法讓我們暖和多少了。

Fear can give you goosebumps too.

害怕也會讓你起雞皮疙瘩。

Look at a frightened cat, and you'll see why.

看看受驚的貓，你就明白了。

Its fur stands up, so it looks bigger and scarier.

牠的毛豎起來，看起來更大、更嚇人。

A porcupine does the same thing with its sharp quills!

豪豬也會用牠尖利的刺做同樣的事！

Our hair is far too short for this trick,

我們的毛髮太短，玩不了這一招，

but our bodies still try it when we're scared.

但我們害怕時，身體還是會試一試。

But why do we get them from music?

那為什麼聽音樂也會起雞皮疙瘩呢？

Strong emotions send the body the same signal as cold.

強烈的情緒會向身體發出和寒冷一樣的訊號。

That's why a beautiful song can give you chills.

所以一首動人的歌會讓你起雞皮疙瘩。

A few people can even make goosebumps on purpose!

少數人甚至能故意讓自己起雞皮疙瘩！

And in 2020, scientists at Harvard found something new!

2020年，Harvard的科學家有了新發現！

In mice, the nerve behind goosebumps also helps new hair grow!

在小鼠身上，引起雞皮疙瘩的神經還能幫助新毛髮生長！

So these tiny bumps may still be useful after all.

所以，這些小疙瘩說不定還是有用的。

Next time you shiver, say thank you to your ancestors!

下次打寒顫時，記得謝謝你的祖先！