Why heights and snakes still hit harder: Study tracks fear sweat in 119 people
Mar 18, 2026
Fear-eliciting images of modern and ancestral threats are equally likely to evoke physiological reactions, despite their distinct evolutionary origins, according to a study published in the open-access journal PLOS One by Eva Landová from Charles University, the Czech Republic, and colleagues. Howe
ver, ancestral threats such as heights and venomous snakes trigger greater skin resistance responses, a measure of sweating, compared to modern threats and harmless stimuli. ...read more read less