Why do we instinctively duck when something comes at us, even if we logically know we’re safe?

r/

I genuinely don’t know the answer

Comments

  1. aaronite Avatar

    You said it: instinct.

  2. tastieraqwerty99 Avatar

    It’s like our brain trusts our eyes more than our logic, survival mode kicks in before reason catches up.

  3. AkaiShuuichi9866 Avatar

    You don’t know you’re safe at the moment when you are ducking. If you really knew for sure beforehand, I don’t think you would duck.
    Instinctual reactions happen before our brains can process a situation from a logical standpoint. You might realize that there is no threat shortly AFTER you duck.

  4. SkyHighExpress Avatar

    It is a reflex and it uses a different network that is quicker than the network that uses your conscious brain. 

  5. Humbled0re Avatar

    probably turned out safer to sometimes do it unnecessarily but also in the right situations than not doing it or having to think of it actively.

  6. grahamlester Avatar

    Because it takes time to decide whether a threat is real or not and ducking regardless saves that time, thus making it less likely that you will be injured.

  7. efreeme Avatar

    because it’s better to react and be wrong than die while trying to figure it out

  8. Adept_Ad_473 Avatar

    Conscious brain: “eyes have sent message, object inbound. Calculate trajectory based on arc and angle of approach”

    Eyes: “Hang on, need to establish reference points to calculate trajectory”

    Unconscious brain: “No time, create distance NOW”

  9. Loose_Bison3182 Avatar

    Is this question because when a bad guy shoots at Superman, he sticks his chest out and the bullets bounce off, but once the gun is empty, click click click, the gun is thrown and Superman ducks?

  10. igotspursthatjing Avatar

    You’re an animal. You’re a mammal and a primate, one of the great apes. Every animal has self preservation instincts

  11. RebaKitt3n Avatar

    What if we’re not?

  12. fermat9990 Avatar

    Because not ducking when you need to will have negative consequences. Not so for ducking when you needn’t.

  13. NortonBurns Avatar

    Because waaaay back in our dim & distant past as upright monkeys, the one who ducked the lion lived to reproduce.
    The one who didn’t was lunch.

    Survival trait.

  14. Dear_CountViscula Avatar

    It’s a subconscious response from the brain to protect you, built over generations of shared survival. People who can subconsciously react and respond to dangerous stimuli are more likely to survive a sudden situation. The traits and genes of ancestors who survived make us what we are today.

    Like imagine if you’re a caveman, you’ll be on edge and trust your instincts/reflexes more than your thoughts. If you’re getting hunted by a large predator without realizing it, those instincts could save your life, rather than blindly trusting your belief that you’re safe.

  15. TheEschatonSucks Avatar

    The ancestors who didn’t reflexively duck had less children

  16. ElGuappo_999 Avatar

    Because lizard brain.

  17. LordBearing Avatar

    Because your body knows safe is better than sorry. The initial “twitch” before you commit to the duck is your body subconsciously getting you ready to duck if you then need to actually follow through with it. It’s better to be halfway and be safe than to assume and get smacked in the face.