What do goosebumps do for humans?

Question

goosebumps make animals scarier what about humans?

Answer 1

It's funny how definitively people seem to answer questions like this.  To say that they serve no purpose just because a definitive one has not been found is a misstep.  I get goosebumps when I am moved by music or something else that is very emotional.  It is not simply a fight or flight reflex.  It certainly has other functions.

Answer 2

Well its a left over from when we had more hair and used to use it for making our hair stand on end to look bigger.

Well thats part of it.....its caused by adrenaline causing the fight of flight thing.

When you are  cold its supposed cause the hairs to stand on end to try and caused a layer of air to be trapped against the skin.  This of course is better when you have more hair on your skin and again is thought to be a left over from times gone by when we had more hair (of course shivering is another things to keep us warm too)

Answer 3

Pretty much nothing. That would be an example of a surviving trait that now serves no evolutionary purpose, but does not affect ability to breed in any way, so it's probably not going away anytime soon.

Answer 4

Very interesting question. I, too, get goosebumps when I am moved by music. I have no idea why or what purpose it serves. I will go do some research.

Here is what Wilipedia has to say.

Also, a man named David Huron at the University of Ohio who teaches music has spent the last 20 years studying different musical phenomena and how they affect humans physiologically.

"Goose bumps are often a response to cold: in animals covered with fur or hair, the erect hairs trap air to create a layer of insulation. Goose bumps can also be a response to anger or fear: the erect hairs make the animal appear larger, in order to intimidate enemies. This can for example be observed in the intimidation displays of chimpanzees[1], in stressed mice[2] and rats, and in frightened cats. In humans, it can even extend to piloerection as a reaction to hearing nails scratch on a chalkboard or listening to awe-inspiring music.[3]

Piloerection as a response to cold or fear is vestigial in humans; as humans retain only very little body hair, the reflex (in humans) now serves no known purpose."

Answer 5

they give answers that you can't explain through words..

arector pillis (part of the body that are popularly known as goosebumps) do it.

Answer 6

Nothing beneficial but nothing too terrible either, they pretty much just show when people are nervous, cold or anxious. But i would say not to try understanding people by staring at there arms all day.