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The Anatomy of Laughter
6
Nicolette Sandoval
THE ANATOMY OF LAUGHTER
Mrs. Schneider
2P
3/22/18
I abide by the honor code NS
DEFINITION
Laughter-
the physiological response to humor:
"rhythmic, vocalized, expiratory and involuntary actions"
WHAT HAPPENS- Physically
WHAT HAPPENS- Physically
2 Parts:
- set of gestures
- making the sound
- facial muscles contract
- zygomatic major muscle lifts your lip
WHAT HAPPENS
epiglottis half-closes the larynx ---> gasp
struggle for oxygen intake
"all human laughter consists of variations on a basic form that consists of short, vowel-like notes repeated every 210 milliseconds"
"primal vocalizations" might even be inherited
WHAT HAPPENS
works abdomen and facial muscles because your diaphram contracts rapidly
WHAT HAPPENS
mentally, crying & laughing are very similar;
both occur "during states of high emotional arousal, involve lingering effects, and don’t cleanly turn on and off."
too much pressure on there tear-ducts
“reflex tears.”
WHAT HAPPENS- Neuralogically
WHAT HAPPENS- Neuralogically
5 areas of the brain have regular electrical activity when exposed to humerous material:
- the left side of the cortex- words and the structure of a joke is analyzed
- frontal lobe- social emotional responses
- right hemisphere of the cortex- intellectual analysis required to get the joke
- sensory processing area of the occipital lobe- contains cells that process visual signals
- motor sections - physical responses to a joke
damage to brain (especially the right frontal lobe) restricts one's sense of humor
WHAT HAPPENS
within brain's limbic system
- amygdala- emotions
- hippocampus - associated with loud, uncontrollable laughter
- thalamus
- hypothalamus
limbic system-
complex system of nerves and networks in the brain, involving several areas near the edge of the cortex concerned with instinct and mood
WHAT HAPPENS
two steps are necessary to comprehend humor
- sensitive to the surprise element in humor; once this is realized and someone recognizes that something unexpected has occurred
- then one has to go beyond the unexpected and look for something that makes sense
a universal language that all members of the human species understand
It's relationships between people.
WHY DO WE LAUGH?
evolved to change the behavior of others
WHY DO WE LAUGH?
social signal- studies have confirmed that theory by proving that people are 30 times more likely to laugh in social settings than when they are alone
humans have a "detector" that responds to laughter by triggering other neural circuits in the brain, which = more laughter
BENEFITS
PHYSICAL
PHYSICAL
‘internal jogging’ - 1 min. of laughter workout = an actual workout on a rowing machine for 10 minutes (Dr. William Fry, associate professore at Stanford)
lowers blood pressure/ eases pain
- reduced secreation of cortisol and epinephrine--> expansion of blood vessels
purifies respiratory tract and excercises diaphram
laughter increases the amount of T cells (body’s natural defense against viruses, cancer cells, and other disease-causing cells)
NEURALOGICAL
NEURALOGICAL
improves mood of groups of people because it reduces stress
- prevents secretion of cortisol
women were more likely to seek out a "sense of humor" while men were more likely to offer it
Chudler, Eric H. “Neuroscience For Kids.” Neuroscience For Kids - Laughter, faculty.washington.edu/chudler/laugh.html.
KC, Karthikeyan. “What Happens When We Laugh?” Geekswipe, Geekswipe, 27 Nov. 2017, geekswipe.net/health/body/what-happens-when-we-laugh/.
WORKS CITED
Petronzio, Matt. “Why Do People Have Different Laughs?” Mashable, Mashable, 30 Nov. 2014, mashable.com/2014/11/30/why-we-have-different-laughs/#oTln1LaCbPqO.
Provine, Robert. “The Science of Laughter.” Psychology Today, Sussex Publishers, 1 Nov. 2000, www.psychologytoday.com/articles/200011/the-science-laughter.
WORKS CITED
“SiOWfa15: Science in Our World: Certainty and Controversy.” SiOWfa15 Science in Our World Certainty and Controversy, sites.psu.edu/siowfa15/2015/09/14/why-do-we-cry-when-we-laugh/.
“SpecialNeeds.com.” What Happens When We Laugh? SpecialNeeds.com, www.specialneeds.com/children-and-parents/general-special-needs/what-happens-when-we-laugh.
“The Laughing Brain 1: How We Laugh.” Science NetLinks, sciencenetlinks.com/lessons/the-laughing-brain-1/.