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Evolution All Purpose
What is the human evolution purpose for getting goosebumps?
It's a holdover from when our ancestors still had fur. When we get cold, tiny muscles attached to each hair follicle contract, making the hair stand on end. The standing hair helps trap air close to the skin, providing an extra layer of insulation when needed. In some animals (like cats), their fur stands on end when they are angry or scared, in order to make themselves look larger and more threatening (and perhaps the fur provides a little more cushioning in case they get into a fight). You might get goosebumps when you're scared as a holdover from when our ancestors had the fur to make this practical.
It's not so much that humans evolved goosebumps. Our ancestors evolved them while they still had fur. Over time, evolution caused us to lose our fur, since our environment no longer made it necessary, and our ancestors figured out how to make crude clothing out of animal skins. We lost the fur, but we didn't lose the muscles connected to the hairs.
Perhaps there it still some benefit that goosebumps provide. It's also possible that evolution just hasn't caused us to lose the muscles just yet. Evolution proceeds at a random rate, especially when there is no selective pressure. For example, if goosebumps conferred some benefit to survival or reproduction (they don't have much use in a modern world, but they'd boost reproduction if goosebumps became the new sexy look), then they would certainly stick around. If goosebumps somehow provided a *disadvantage* then they would disappear quickly.
As it stands, though, they don't really do much good or bad. If someone were born unable to have goosebumps, it wouldn't be a big deal. Since there is no selective pressure one way or the other, the genes responsible for goosebumps will probably degrade and disappear after many, many generations. Since recently (in evolutionary terms) humans and their ancestors had much more hair, we just haven't had the time to lose the trait.
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Purpose of Existence is Orgasm Egoism & Evolution of Cognition 102209
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