Review of Laughter: A Scientific Investigation by Robert Provine. ‘What a weird trick has been played

on our linguistic species to express itself with such stupid “ha ha ha” sounds. Why

don’t we leave it at a cool “that was funny”?

These questions are old, going back to philosophers who have puzzled over why one

of humanity’s finest achievements–its sense of humor–is expressed in such an

animal-like fashion. There can be no doubt that laughter is an inborn characteristic.’ We share laughter with the apes; it appears to be associated with a playful attitude, and is distinct from smiling, which encodes affection and appeasement instead. Laughter is not as much as we think a response to a joke; naturalistic studies show that people laugh more frequently in response to situations that are far from humorous. Laughter’s purpose seems to be to solidify social relations by signalling mutual liking and well-being. A group of people laughing together — more often men than women, BTW — broadcast solidarity and togetherness often at the expense of the outsider. “Provine expands on this theme with the observation

that women laugh more in response to men’s remarks than the reverse. The asymmetry between the sexes starts early in

life, between boys and girls, and seems to be cross-cultural. The man as laugh-getter also turned up in an analysis of

personal ads, in which Provine found that women generally sought partners with a sense of humor, which male

advertisers claimed to have in great measure.” Scientific American