How long were you able to keep your eyes open?

We've all challenged our friends to staring contests before. Do you remember  your best time? 

This topic  came to my mind when i came across to an article stating,  "a man in Australia's Northern Territory kept his eyes open for over 40 minutes!", no its not a joke. He set this record last year at "So You Think You Can Stare," Australia's first staring competition in the Northern Territory. When asked he quoted (Australian guy ) that "it feels like getting a tattoo on my eyeball."

But how did he do it? And was it dangerous? I mean, what really happens if you intentionally keep your eyes open for that long without blinking? 

I think this guy just has a lot of focus and control. And I doubt he had any lasting damage.
Its universal fact that we all have to blink. It's an involuntary reflex that keeps our corneas from drying out and stops dust and other junk from getting in . Normaly, we blink about 15 times a minute. But if it's windy or smoky, that rate goes way up.

We also blink for psychological reasons. Like if we're attentively reading or listening, our blink rate cuts to less than half. A team of researchers at the University of Waterloo found that even while reading, if our minds wander, we blink significantly more often than when we're focused.

 So how long were you able to keep your eyes open? Try it yourself. I want to know your best time.

Share  your best time on Twitter, Facebook, Now!!

- Team Shirsa