What is the feeling when you get a shiver / tingle down your spine. Or
when your hairs stand up on the back of your neck? What causes it,
what happens and what is it for? Thanks.

Hello,

Shivering is the body's natural, involuntary reaction to feeling a
chill.  The skin tightens up, causing hairs to stand up and the
muscles to shake.  Ostensibly, this is to help generate a little body
heat, but it would seem to be very inefficient.

Why do we shiver when we get cold?
http://almanac.com/question/oneanswer.php?questionnumber=12829

Fact Monster:  Why do we shiver?
http://www.factmonster.com/ipka/A0921069.html

--Missy

Search terms:  [ why do we shiver ]

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Request for Answer Clarification by rai130-ga on 11 Jan 2005 01:18 PST

I think I can't have explained my question very well. I know what
shivering is. I'm talking about when you get that ghostly feeling when
your hair stands on end on the back of your neck when someone makes a
stirring speech or something similar. Don't want to be too overly
patriotic, but I get it when i listen to Churchill's apeeches. Does
no-one else get this?

Yeah, I get that too Rai... but I can't say it's from Churchill's speeches :)

And unfortunately I'm of no help to you because I don't know what in
my body causes it either.