Feb 10 2009
The Tickle Reflex
Oh my . . . a furry insect crawling over my pistols. It tickles.
Of course, it is astronomically unlikely that flowers think. So I was projecting there. Still, I wonder if insects are responsible for our reaction to kitchy-kitchy-coo fingers beneath armpits. We squirm. A reflex to shake off and shed an unwelcome, and potentially poisonous guest?
. . . . Just checked Wikipedia. Interesting. Peek below the fold to satisfy your curiosity.
In 1897 psychologists G. Stanley Hall and Arthur Allin described a “tickle” as two different types of phenomena. The first is a sensation caused by very light movement across the skin. This type of tickle, called knismesis, generally does not produce laughter and is sometimes accompanied by an itching sensation. The second type of tickle is the laughter inducing, “heavy” tickle, produced by repeatedly applying pressure to “ticklish” areas, and is known as gargalesis.
The feather-type of tickle is often elicited by crawling animals and insects, such as spiders, mosquitoes, scorpions or beetles, which may be why it has evolved in many animals. Gargalesis reactions, on the other hand, are thought to be limited to humans and other primates; however, some research has indicated that rats can be tickled as well.
