Chimpanzees 'caught a yawn' from this robot and researchers aren't sure why

Breakthroughs, discoveries, and DIY tips sent every weekday. Scientists from City St George's, University of London created a terrifyingly realistic android head to determine whether chimpanzees can "catch" yawns from robots. Remarkably, it turns out they can, but researchers still aren't sure why. The study, detailed this week in the journal Scientific Reports, found that a slight majority (57.1 percent) of adult chimpanzees observed would yawn in response to seeing the android head yawn. Researchers also noted that the same proportion of chimpanzees responded to the yawning robot by either lying down or gathering materials used for bedding--which could be a sign that they interpreted the animatronic head's agape mouth as a "cue" to rest.