Two Irish guys walk out of a bar……..Hey, it could happen! ” what is this a joke?” well not really it is serious science according to Jim Wilson and Popular Science Magazine. What makes people laugh is the Mount Everest of neuroscience. Neurologists understand the auditory system well enough to restore hearing with cochlear implants. Biomedical engineers have successfully implanted vision chips. Brain surgeons know that poking the brain in one place will conjure an image of your third-grade teacher,while prodding elsewhere can evoke the aroma of her perfume. Neuropsychologists have gone as far as isolating a cluster of brain cells that become active when deeply religious people pray. Yet the knock knock joke remains as mysterious as area 51.
The difficulty in comprehending how humor works reflects the complexity of the task. The subject intrigues scientists because understanding jokes could ultimately explain how the brain works, and provide insights to repairing damage inflicted by a stoke or disease. Recently scientists who take jokes seriously reported some interesting findings. With the help of the Internet and volunteers from around the world, British researchers identified and ranked the world’s funniest joke. Then using a brain scanner identified the part of the brain that becomes active when we laugh. In a separate experiment, Canadian and British scientists made an equally astounding discovery: different types of jokes tickle different parts of the brain.
The perfect joke
” Past research into humor has revealed important insights into brain functioning” says Richard Wiseman, A psychologist at the University of Hertfordshire near London. About this time last year, he created a project called Laugh Lab. It’s mission find the world’s funniest joke. Wiseman’s quest for the funniest joke began with a call for jokes put out over the Internet. After his staff weeded out the obscene submissions and edited away racial epithets, he recorded the most poplar jokes and posted audio files on a website. Visitors were asked to rate what they heard. Last fall, a computer picked a joke that was most appealing to both sexes, in all age groups, in all countries. It was submitted by Gurpal Gosalla 31 year old middle act from Manchester. No, I a just kidding the guy was a psychiatrist from England. Perhaps you heard it, the joke goes like this:
A couple of New Jersey hunters are out in the woods when one of them falls to the ground. He doesn’t seem to be breathing , his eyes are rolled back in his head. The other guy whips out a cellphone and calls emergency services. He gasps to the operator: “My friend is dead! what can I do?” the operator in a calm soothing voice says : “just take it easy. I can help. First, Let’s make sure he’s dead.” There is a silence, then a shot is heard. The guy’s voice comes back on the line. He says: “Okay, now what?”
Wiseman said the winner as well as the runner up joke and country by country favorites, which you will find on the PM. zone, fits a pattern. ” We find jokes funny for lots of different reasons”, he says. ” They sometimes make us feel superior to others, reduce the emotional impact of anxiety provoking events, or surprise us because of some kind of incongruity. The hunter joke contains all three elements-we feel superior to the stupid hunter, realize the incongruity of his misunderstanding the operator, and the jokes helps us laugh about our own concerns about our own mortality.
Wiseman concluded his experiment by putting volunteers in a functional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) machine and watching the blood flow change in different parts of their brains they listened to jokes. “The ( test results) show that there is a very precise area of the brain involved in understanding why a joke is funny,” he says. ” It is mainly located toward the back of the frontal lobes. Interestingly, this fits in with other research suggesting that people who have damaged this part of the brain often lose their sense of humor.”
Into the Brain
Vinod Goel of York University in Toronto and his colleague Raymond Dolan at the institute of Nuerology in London focused their search on what happens inside the brain as it processes a joke. Like Wiseman, Goel placed each of his volunteers in an MRI device. Here they listened to prerecorded puns: ” Why did the golfer wear two pairs of pants? He got a hole in one” ( which by the way is the lowest form of comedy) They also heard Goel describes semantic jokes, such as: “Why don’t sharks bite lawyers? Professional courtesy.” Goel limited his jokes to a format in which the set up line is couched as a question, and the answer is the payoff line. He also threw in fake jokes as controls. In drug research, controls are sugar pills. In comedy research, controls are jokes with a bland payoff line: ( which would include any joke from Argus Hamilton’s act) “Why did the Golfer wear two pairs of pants? It was a cold day.” Good night Ladies and Gentlemen! Try the veal ! You have been a wonderful audience!
When Goel analyzed his data, he found that both puns and semantic jokes activated the medial ventral prefrontal cortex. The part of the brain involved with reward and control behavior resides her, so the finding was not expected. The second discovery was a surprise, and my favorite part of the article, The brain did not treat all jokes equally. Puns and semantic jokes traveled through different neural circuitry. The golfer’s pun stimulated a structure called Broca’s area, which is associated with speech. The semantic joke about lawyers, however, increased oxygen flow in both temporal lobes. This was unexpected because language processing is believed to be confined to the left temporal lobe. Lawyers in seems are really turning up everywhere.
In conclusion there remains much about humor that has yet to be resolved. Perhaps we will never understand why women don’t get the Three Stooges. Or why, statistically speaking, ducks are the funniest animal. What the limited insights into humor have taught us is this: Jokes are more than funny, they are and expansive window into how the brain actually works and if laughter really is the best medicine then stand up comedians would be earning PhD’s that said, a smile can still be a pretty handy umbrella against a possible downpour of health problems as well, “Just the act of laughing can be beneficial from both emotional and a physiological perspective” says Joel Goodman, Ed.D., Director of the Humor Project in Saratoga Springs, New York . ” “Physically, respiration and circulation are both enhanced through the act of laughter. We oxygenate the blood, which energizes us and helps us think more clearly.” Plus, Goodman says,”Research shows that laughter stimulates chemicals in the brain that actually suppress stress related hormones. So next time you see a comedian on-stage and you feel the need to heckle….Don’t ! It probably means you really don’t have much going on between your ears and that you are probably should be wearing a helmet in your everyday life. Someone should do research on that, anyway I hope you have a new appreciation for the Art of Stand up comedy!
I want to preface this with How much I like canadians, eh? Some of my favorite people on the planet, eh? They are good folks, they like to have a good time, drink heavily and they have an amazing sense of humor!! I speak from experience as I have performed at the Montreal Comedy Festival( 6 times ) One of the premiere comedy festivals in the world, and I perform in Canada on a regular basis. They are apparently showing segments of my Comedy Central Presents on Canadian Television a program called “Just for Laughs Tonight” . The Program comes with a WARNING !! That the content may not be suitable for all viewers! That covers people who may be easily offended, or who may have delicate sensibilities, or who are to stupid and take comedy seriously…. missing the point entirely!! The person who wrote this e mail falls into the latter category…. to Stupid!! Not only does he have selective hearing, because obviously he did not really listen to the actual content however, I cannot speak for the editing on Canadian television, Eh? But the special ran in prime time in the United States to critical reviews and a standing ovation. I am a professional stand up comedian, it is a tough business to break into, and it is a tough business to stay in!! You have to have an edge and stay current. It is a highly competitive industry and I am constantly trying to generate original content, and stand out from the crowd of stand up comedians who flood Comedy Central and the club circuit. Anyone who knows me as a performer knows I give 100 % every time I go on stage and work to the top of my intelligence, But I am also a comedian I am supposed to say the wrong things and be outrageous it is the nature of the job!! As I read this e mail I was laughing uncontrollably for about 20 minutes my favorite line is, ” you call that comedy? I call that sick!! ” LMAO!! I may put that on a shirt. Enjoy !!
From: Brennan Enslen
Subject: Just for Laughs
This was e mail he sent directly to me
Message Body:
Hi Jimmy, I just saw you on the show “just for laughs” on the comedy network and I must say that I was very disappointed. So much so, that I felt it necessary to write to the network. below is a copy of what I sent them. I wanted you to read it, especially after I read on your website that you are proud of “GOD, My family & friends, The United States of America. In that order!!” With all due respect, if they had seen your act, I think they would be anything but proud. So this is what I wrote to the network:
for the record my Family, Friends & Fans are very proud of me and my accomplishments.
I am writing this email to express my utter shock and disgust at the behaviour of Jimmy Shubert on Just for Laughs tonight. I realize that each episode is preceded by a warning that some content may not be appropriate for all viewers but this man’s sad attempt a comedy was nothing more than personal attacks and a disgusting routine about school shootings. Foul language and sexual jokes are one thing but this man’s attempt to be funny crossed a line into something that can only be described and calloused and sick. He began his routine talking about a particular pair of conjoined twins, making fun of their situation making all sorts of disparaging remarks about them. I wonder how their family would feel if they saw this man’s routine. I wonder how he would feel if he were in those parent’s place. He directed his remarks, not just at conjoined twins in general, but at this one pair in particular. I would not be surprised if they would have a case to charge him with slander if they had
seen his routine. If this had been the only problem with the performance I would not have written in, but unfortunately he became even more disgraceful with his next bit. He proceeded to make light of the victims and perpetrators of school shootings. There are no words to express how disgusted and angry his words made me. I was actually felt physically sick hearing him make light of one of the most tragic and unthinkable events to ever happen in any school. These are not characters in some movie. Real children died in those schools. Real father’s lost their daughters. Real mother’s lost their sons. As a parent myself, I cannot imagine what it would be like to experience this and here is this man on TV making fun of this event? You call that comedy? I call that sick. I think Jimmy and those who booked him on the show should be absolutely ashamed of themselves. If I could cancel the comedy network from my cable package, I would call the cable company tomorrow. Unfortunately I the
channel comes with the package but I can tell you it is a channel I will be skipping from now on. I cannot in good conscience support a network that would air such distasteful and debased programming. I can only hope that your producers will be more careful in the future.
Critics are like eunuchs at a gangbang !!
The Retraction:
Jimmy, I’d like to apologize for several things in my email. I’ve heard it said that over half of communication is non verbal so I know that email is a poor way to communicate what can be an emotionally charged message. After reading my email again I realize that it was more of a reaction that a response and I was out of line in several areas. First, let me apologize for my remarks about family and friends being proud. It was a cheap shot and I recognize that you do have much to be proud of. You’ve built a good career and I myself have often laughed at your comedy on King of Queens. Secondly, I realize that my wording was quite strong and I understand your desire to call me all sorts of names and blast me in your blog after my remarks about your career. We’ve all read the guys in blogs and forums who go on angry un-informed rants, only to make themselves appear to be ignorant jerks and I’m afraid this is what I may have come off sounding like.
Since you’ve identified my citizenship I feel a responsibility to make things right so as not to give Canadians a bad name. While I stand by my opinion that some things are too painful to be discussed with humor (even shock humor), I should have formulated more calm and mature response. Also, you are right, those twins are fair game after their public attempts at fame and so you don’t deserve to be criticized for using them as comedy material. Basically I wanted to say that it was not my intention to start an internet war of words. Though I may disagree with you on some points, I apologize for my lack of respect and I do wish you well in your career. and all is right with the world again can’t we all just get along
Below is not in any particular order just some things and people I am fond of ….
The Sun, soft white sand, rhythmic waves crashing on the beach, the big blue ocean, My bare feet in the sand, all kinds of music (see below), lobster, cold beer, Cheese Steaks from Gino’s, Apple TV, salty peanuts, fresh fruit, Laughter, Great Wine, good stories, Seafood, Photography, PS3, Netflix, Cooking, traveling, road trips, sitting around a open fire on a chilly night, Deserts, A star filled sky, BMW 740 iL (the old body version), Pool Hall’s, Art, Design, BBQ, science, 24, Meryl Streep , Video Pod casts, Architecture, A perfectly cooked steak, Archeology, Italian food, Martin Luther King jr., Humphrey Bogart, Elizabeth Taylor, Steve Jobs, Thai Food, John Wayne, The internet, A soft wet kiss, Gandhi, My i Phone 3Gs, Harriet Tubman, Louie Armstrong, Jesus Christ, raw almonds, Buddha, Mother Theresa, eye contact, A women’s hands.
Muhammad Ali & Joe Frazier (you couldn’t have one without the other), The 1950’s, A good massage, Jackie Robison, The Firing Range for target practice, Macintosh Computers, Lance Armstrong, Penelope Cruz, the sound of children playing in the background, Drew Barrymore, The whistle of a train in the distance in the dark of the night , Dives & Joints, Don Miguel Ruiz, Jack Bauer, MMA, The NFL, MLB, PGA ,Jukeboxes, Muscle Cars from the 70’s.
The men & women of the armed forces, Thank you all for your courage & tremendous sacrifices that you and your families make, writing in my journal, Ben & Jerry’s chunky monkey, exploring, Heart, adventure, live music, creativity, Miracles, good coffee, Sushi, silence, dry dirty martinis with two olives, stand up comedy, Pumpkin Pancakes, Aubrey Hepburn, Character & integrity, Irish whiskey (neat), newspapers , peanut butter & jelly sandwiches, traveling lightly, Thanksgiving Dinner with Family and Friends, Kettle One on the rocks with a lemon twist, Ava Gardner, great service, Charlize Theron, true blue friends, documentaries, impulsiveness, making love, passport stamps, shots of Patron Chilled (no salt or lime), Juliette Marquis, homemade Chicken Soup, Selma Hayek, Edmund Hillary & Tenzing Norgay, Ernest Hemmingway, Hugh Hefner, Charlie Chaplain, John F. Kennedy, Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Jefferson, Steve McQueen, 50 year wedding anniversaries, Ronald Regan, pea soup, Uma Thurman, Jackie Gleason, George Carlin, My peach baby back ribs, Sam Kinison , Dogs, Golf, Ashley Judd, Bill Hicks, Journalism, Marlon Brando, screenwriting, film making, foreign / Indie films, Art house Films, Sunday mornings, The 3 stooges, freshly cut flowers in a vase , thunder storms. Anything Irish, Flea Markets.
12 year old scotch, curiosity, Magic, Catherine McCormack, questions, words, books, Miami, Jacqueline Bisset, magazines, Ireland, Natalie Portman, South Korea, Montreal, Vancouver, Halle Berry, Cayman islands, St. Thomas, St. Martin, Philadelphia, Chicago, Pandora, William S. Burroughs, Clint Eastwood, Cancun, Harry Houdini, Johnny Carson, Post Production, Farah Fawcett, my editing bay, technology, vineyards, Bikrim yoga, national geographic, Bossa Nova, Acoustic, Bass, Cello, Charles Bukowski, Hunter S. Thompson, P.J. O’Rourke, William Faulkner, Vladimir Nabokov, E.E. Cummings, F. Scott Fitzgerald, James Joyce, Taschen Books, Irving Penn, Acting, Salsa Dancing (lessons), Sir Isaac Newton, Da Vinci, Brave Heart, A Man and a Woman, Dali, Fellini, Kurosawa, Hitchcock, Truffaut, Spielberg, Bergman, Scorsese, Wong Kar Wei, The Godfather 1 & 2 , Blizzards, Latin jazz, , Kauai, Galleries, snow, seasons, forests, hot tubs, Cold showers, Making passionate love outside in the driving rain, being in love, poetry, Brazil, Brunch, Midnight, Fireflies, Capri, Got land, Goa, Saigon, K2, touching the void, Tamarama beach, People watching, Antarctica, Polar Bears, New York City, Central Park, Horseback Riding, Politics, The South Pole, The Tango, 2am, New Mexico, Fiji, Tuscany, Los Olivos, Maldives, Museums, watching migrating whales in the pacific ocean, Globetrotting, MOMA, LACMA, The Getty, Rodin, snow boarding, Tour De France, watching animals in their natural habitat, Iditarod, mountain biking, hiking, scuba diving, sailing, Camping, Krav Maga , conditioning workouts, Dolphins, discovery channel, , warm bread, salty butter, swimming laps, inquisitiveness, rain, sunrise, sunsets, Farmer’s Markets.
Music I am listening to currently
Dean Martin , Sigur Ros , John Coltrane, Eric Clapton, Elvis, Amos Lee, Damien Rice, BB King, Nick Drake, John Mayer, Aerosmith, The Rolling Stones, Sade, The Who, The Beatles, Red house Painters, Allman Brother, Bill Evans, AC/DC, Billy Joel, Chet Baker, Koop, Bliss, Terry Callier, Sinatra, Dave Matthews, Jackie Gleason Orchestra, Ennio Morricone, Old 97’s , Wilco, Francais Lai, Monica Zetterlund, Yo-Yo Ma, David Bowie, Thievery Corporation, Bruce Springsteen, Zero 7, Air, Al Green, Van Halen, Flogging Molly, Lisa Gerrard, Ryuichi Sakomoto, Elliott Smith, Death Cab for Cutie, Weezer, Jose Padilla, Antonio Carlos Jobim, Caetano Veloso, Gal Costa, Gilberto Gil, Miles Davis, Sun Kil Moon, JLC, Les Baines Douches, Cafe Del Mar, Dylan, Ali Farka Toure, Tom Petty, Satie, Bach, Sarah Vaughan, Nina Simone, Joe Henry, Ben Harper, Beck, Hendrix, Iron and Wine, Santana, Curtis Mayfield, Kings of Convenience, Dropkick Murphies, Imogen Heap, Van Morisson, Jack Johnson, Yo La Tengo, The National, The Frames, The Cinematic Orchestra, Phish, KD Lang, Armin Van Buuren, Chicane, DJ Tiesto, Faithless, Fatboy Slim, Ferry Corsten, Wlliam Orbit, Clout Cult, Fleet Foxes, Stan Getz, The Clash, Neil Young, New Order, Without Gravity, Will Stratton, Sondre Lerche, Wilco, Ravi Shankar, Joni Mitchell, Erykah Badu, Jim O’Rourke, Stevie Ray Vaughn, Cat Stevens, Stevie wonder, Simon & Garfunkel, Dead Can Dance, Portishead, Gypsy Kings, Kings of Leon, Dusty Springfield, Bob Marley, Gorecki, Rokia Traore, Les Nubians, Lou Reed, U2, John Legend, Smithreens
