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Why do we stick our tongue out when concentrating?

Question

I was writing a Christmas card last week and my girlfriend asked me: why do people stick their tongue out when they concentrate?
David, Barbican

Answer

** Definitive **
Name: Mark, Wallington
Qualification: I think I heard it from Stephen Fry!
Answer: It’s the same reason that if you’re trying to concentrate, you turn the radio off. It removes one of your senses – you can’t taste anything. Then your brain, as a processor, has less to work on.