Why do we get goosebumps?
Bumpy Skin Tales
Why do we get goosebumps?
You're watching a scary movie, or you step outside into cold air, or you hear a song that gives you chills — and suddenly, tiny bumps pop up all over your arms. Your skin looks like a plucked chicken. What's going on?
Each bump is a tiny rebellion staged by a hair. At the base of every hair on your body sits a microscopic muscle called an arrector pili muscle — "hair raiser" in Latin. When that muscle contracts, it yanks the hair upright and puckers the skin around it into a little mound.
