Why is yawning contagious? – By Claudia Aguirre

https://ed.ted.com/lessons/why-is-yawning-contagious-claudia-aguirre

I love TED-Ed lessons about everyday phenomena and yawning is certainly one of them. The lesson doesn’t cover why we yawn in the first place, though (why do we Claudia?) Is contagious yawning a reflex? A non-conscious mimicry (we often cough when someone coughs as well) or mirror neuron phenomenon? FMRI shows oxygen consumption by the way, so to say that areas in the brain ‘light up’ is dumbing down. There is a TED-Ed on FMRI and other brain imaging methods, by the way. Is it an empathetic response? Were you yawning during this lesson? I was. Good lesson Dr. Claudia Aguirre!