MidLitSci
Surviving Winter

It's Instinct: You're Born Knowing It

Humans learn to add layers of clothing when they get cold; some birds fluff up their feathers to reduce heat loss or shiver to create heat. The birds' response to change is instinctive.

Your body also has its own built-in response to changes in the environment. To keep from getting too cold, your body shivers, or shakes. This is a response that you cannot control, sometimes called an instinct. Shivering is not a learned behavior—it is an instinct you are born with. Most living things respond to changes in conditions around them because of instincts.

How do humans respond instinctively to these environmental conditions?

  • Bright sunshine
  • Hot temperature
  • A chilly breeze