Connecting Ideas

Taking Laughter Seriously




He's not exactly a stand-up comedian, but Robert Provine is considered one of the world's leading experts on laughter, and he's been getting his share of applause.

Provine, a neurobiologist and UMBC professor of psychology, wrote the book on laughter--Laughter: A Scientific Investigation (Viking), which explores the physiological, psychological, and sociological meanings of this highly complex human behavior.

Provine's book was widely reviewed in publications ranging from Scientific American to Elle, The New Republic, Newsweek, and The New York Times, and it won a spot on the New York Public Library's 25 "Books to Remember" list of 2000. Provine also became a regular on national television and radio, with appearances on everything from 20/20 to PBS's Scientific American Frontiers, with series host Alan Alda visiting Provine's UMBC lab.

Provine's research has shown that it's not jokes or funny situations that make us laugh, but an involuntary reaction to hearing others laugh aloud. (Provine is also an authority on another involuntary and contagious behavior--yawning.)

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