A Live Experiment Right Here

i-900d1ae7bec6e14b78e4a79b4f324c07-Franz Xaver Messerschmidt The Yawner (model) 1778-1783 ii.jpg

It's Franz-Xaver Messerschmidt's The Yawner (model), circa 1778-1783

Did it make you yawn?

We'll take a tally.

More like this

Nope, but that's weird because I'll sometimes READ the word yawn and I'll feel the urge to stretch out my arms and open wide.

Yes.

By Hank Roberts (not verified) on 27 Aug 2007 #permalink

me, no. My wife, yes.

yep, and almost instantly

By CanuckRob (not verified) on 27 Aug 2007 #permalink

No - I thought he was yelling.

Nope, I saw it as screaming.

When you _wrote_ that it was a yawn, I could feel a proto-yawn forming. Easily surpressed, but more than the sculpture did.

No. I didn't realize it was supposed to be a yawn until I read the caption (a similar response as that described by Stephen).

For me even after I knew it was supposed to be a yawn it looked a bit more like a scream.

By Ben Scarlato (not verified) on 27 Aug 2007 #permalink

Odd. I felt an incipient desire to yawn and unconsciously grabbed the cold cup of coffee sitting next to the keyboard. Tasted good, but there was something solid and small in it. I thought it might be a crumb of cookie or donut or something, but I hadn't had any with this cup. Turned out to be a drowned housefly. Never did get around to the yawn, what with all those interrupts.

Nope, I knew it was a yawn and didn't yawn.

It is to artsy for me to register as a human being that is yawning. So no I did not yawn. However yes, I do yawn if other people yawn. I think because he is bald that it doesn't do if for me either. Oh and the swarthy complexion.

Exactly what Stephen said

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Total Lunar Eclipse, from my Altadena Garden

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UNDER THE ORANGE

GARDEN, ORANGE TREE, ECLIPSE

ORANGE MOON: CRICKETS!

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4:00 A.M.
28 Aug 2007

Yes. It's early, and I'm tired though.

Yes - as mentioned by others, I thought he was screaming at first, but once I read the caption, looking at him made me yawn. interesting.

Didn't make me yawn. Even though I'm kinda sleepy right now. Until I read the caption I thought it was part of some weird new chess set.

Nope.

FWIW: I didn't even feel the urge to yawn until I read your question: "Did it make you yawn?"

(In fact, at first glance I thought the person was yelling, then I noticed the eyes were closed)

Nope. Thought he was screaming, realized it was yawn, still no yawn even after lots and lots of thinking about it and even writing 'yawn' several times.

Didn't I read recently (New Scientist?) that yawning is induced by warm brains/heads? No explanation why it's communicable.

Tom
http://wow-really.blogspot.com

It gave me the urge, but then I had to force it to completion.

Much the above: thought it was a scream, read that it was a yawn and started to yawn. Weird!

By Stacey C. (not verified) on 04 Sep 2007 #permalink

No. Reading about yawning made me want to yawn, but I still haven't yawned. Perhaps if I'd read this in the evening I would have been more inclined to yawn. I definitely yawn when my husband yawns. Perhaps a screen image of a piece of sculpture requires too much interpretation, and our minds are preoccupied with deciphering what's happening, or evaluating the quality of the sculpting, or wondering who this is, or why anyone would sculpt a yawn, or why we're all sitting here spending time scratching our heads over this picture of a sculpture.
Must clean house now.

"Oh here I go again," I said to myself when the page opened and I saw the upper half of the statue's mouth, "I'm gonna...[yawn]!"

No.

By álvaro josé ca… (not verified) on 05 Sep 2007 #permalink

dude, it totally did. HA!

i scrolled down past the picture and was yawning as i did, before i read the caption...ha!

no. I thought he was yelling, but after I read the subtext, I had a sudden urge to yawn.

Amazing article, thank You !!

By 台灣大樂透 (not verified) on 22 Sep 2014 #permalink