Robert R. Provine is Professor of Psychology and Assistant Director of the Neuroscience Program at the University of Maryland Baltimore County. He has authored over 50 research papers concerning developmental neuroscience and the neural mechanisms of behavior, conducting studies on over 30 species, using techniques ranging from electrophysiology and tissue culture to field studies. He came to the study of laughter and human ethology from a background in neuroembryology, having studied and published with Nobel Prize (Rita Levi-Montalcini) and National Medal of Science (Viktor Hamburger) winners. A scholar who has lectured in North America and Europe in settings ranging from medical school departments of neurology to NASA, NIST and grade schools, he has received research grants from the National Institutes of Health. His work has been featured in dozens of articles worldwide, including the New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Daily Telegraph (London), Le Figaro, National Geographic, Psychology Today, Equinox (Canada), New Scientist, Discover, Science et Avenir, the Observer (London), Panorama (Italy), Focus (Germany), The Los Angeles Times, and The Washington Post. His numerous televisio appearances include "Good Morning America," "ABC World News Tonight" "Eye to Eye" (CBS), "20/20" (ABC) and specials on The Learning Channel ("Understanding Laughter" -- with Bill Cosby), The Discover Channel ("Laughter"-- with Conan O'Brien), and BBC Horizon ("Beyond the Joke"). His radio appearances include "All Things Considered" (NPR), "Morning Edition" (NPR), "Talk of the Nation" (NPR) and "Talk of the Nation--Science Friday" (NPR). When not doing science, Professor Provine enjoys stargazing, optics, and martial arts, serving as advisor and instructor of the University Tae Kwon Do Club. He is married to pianist and musicologist Helen Weems and has two adult children.
Curriculum Vitae
ROBERT R. PROVINE
Department of Psychology
University of Maryland Baltimore County
Baltimore, MD 21250
Personal Data
Date of Birth: May 11, 1943
Place of Birth: Tulsa, Oklahoma U.S.A.
Education
B.S. 1965 Oklahoma State University, Psychology (Microbiology)
Ph.D. 1971 Washington University, Psychology (Neuroembryology)
Experience in Higher Education
Professor of Psychology (1983-present)
Associate Professor of Psychology (1976-83)
Assistant Professor of Psychology (1974-76)
University of Maryland Baltimore County, Baltimore, MD.
1971-1974
Research Assistant Professor of Psychology (1972-74) and Research Associate, Departments of Biology (Laboratories of Profs. Viktor Hamburger and Rita Levi-Montalcini, 1972-74), and Ophthalmology (Laboratory of Prof. Jay Enoch, 1973-74), Washington University, St. Louis, MO. Visiting Scientist (1971), Research Laboratory of Electronics/Communications Biophysics, MIT, Cambridge, MA.
1965-1971
Graduate Student in Psychology, Washington University, St. Louis, MO. Training in neuroembryology, neuropsychology, physiological, and comparative psychology.
1961-1965
Undergraduate Student, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK.
B.S. in Psychology with requirements fulfilled in microbiology.
Publications (Books)
2000
Laughter: A scientific investigation. Viking (US and Canada) October 2000.
Laughter: A scientific investigation. Faber and Faber (UK) November 2000.Laughter: A scientific investigation. Castoldi and Baldini (Italy) in preparation.
Laughter: A scientific investigation. Laffont (France) in preparation.
Publications (Research articles and book chapters)
2000
Laughter: Why it's not funny. R.R. Provine. Psychology Today (Nov/Dec), pp. 58-62.
In the trenches with Viktor Hamburger and Rita Levi-Montalcini: One student's perspective. International Journal of Developmental Neuroscience, in press.
The laughing species. R.R. Provine. Natural History (Dec/Jan), in press.
1999
Universal Schooling. R.R. Provine, In J. Brockman, ed., The greatest inventions of the past 2000 years. Simon and Schuster, New York, pp. 61-62.
1998Epidemie de rire. R. R. Provine et Helen Weems. Sciences et Avenir (Julliet/Aout), pp. 18- 19.
Le rire des singes. R. R. Provine et H. R. Weems. Sciences et Avenir (Julliet/Aout), pp. 20- 23.
Laughter. R. R. Provine, In Encyclopedia of neuroscience (2nd ed.). Elsevier, Amsterdam.
Yawning. R. R. Provine, In Encyclopedia of neuroscience (2nd ed.). Elsevier, Amsterdam.
1996
Yawning. R. R. Provine. In Encyclopedia of neuroscience. Elsevier, Amsterdam. CD ROM
Laughing. R. R. Provine. In Encyclopedia of neuroscience. Elsevier, Amsterdam. CD ROM
Contagious yawning and laughter: Significance for sensory feature detection, motor pattern generation, imitation, and the evolution of social behavior. R. R. Provine. In C. M. Heyes and B. G. Galef, eds., Social learning in animals: The roots of culture. Academic Press, New York pp. 179-208.
Yawns, laughs, smiles, tickles, and talking: Naturalistic and laboratory studies of facial action and social communication. R. R. Provine. In J. A. Russell, and J. M. Fernandez Dols Eds., New directions in the study of facial expression. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge pp. 158-175.
Laughter. R. R. Provine. American Scientist, 84, 38-45.
1994
Pre- and postnatal development of wing-flapping and flight in birds: Embryological, comparative and evolutionary perspectives. R. R. Provine. In M. O. Davies & P. Green , Eds., Perception and motor control in birds: A unified approach. Springer-Verlag, Berlin pp. 135-159.
1993Laughter punctuates speech: Linguistic, social, and gender contexts of laughter. R. R. Provine. Ethology, 95, 291-298.
Prenatal behavior development: Ontogenetic adaptations and non-linear processes. R. R. Provine. In G. J. P. Savelsbergh, Ed., The development of coordination in infancy. Elsevier, Amsterdam. pp. 203-236.
Natural priorities for developmental study: Neuroembryological perspectives of motor development. R. R. Provine. In A. Kalverboer, B. Hopkins, & R. Geuze, Eds., Motor development in early and later childhood. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge. pp. 51-73.
Yawning, R. R. Provine. In M. A. Carskadon, Ed., Encyclopedia of sleep and dreaming. MacMillan, New York. pp. 651-654.
1992Contagious laughter: Laughter is a sufficient stimulus for laughs and smiles. R. R. Provine. Bulletin of the Psychonomic Society, 30, 1-4.
1991Laughter: A stereotyped human vocalization. R. R. Provine and Y. L. Yong. Ethology , 89, 115-124.
1989Faces as releasers of contagious yawning: An approach to face detection using normal human subjects. R. R. Provine. Bulletin of the Psychonomic Society, 27, 211-214.
Laughing, smiling, and talking: Relation to sleeping and social context in humans. R. R. Provine and K. R. Fischer. Ethology, 83, 295-305.
Yawning and simulation science. R. R. Provine. Simulation, 53, 193-194.
Contagious yawning and infant imitation. R. R. Provine. Bulletin of the Psychonomic Society, 27, 125-126.
1988On the uniqueness of embryos and the difference it makes. R. R. Provine. In W. P. Smotherman and S. R. Robinson, Eds., Behavior of the fetus. Telford Press, Caldwell, New Jersey. pp. 35-46.
1987Yawning: Relation to sleeping and stretching in humans. R. R. Provine, H. B. Hamernik, and B. C. Curchack. Ethology, 76, 152-160.
Yawning: No effect of 3-5% CO2, 100% O2, and exercise. R. R. Provine, B. C. Tate, and L. L. Geldmacher. Behavioral and Neural Biology, 48, 382-392.
1986Behavioral Neuroembryology: Motor Perspectives. R. R. Provine. In W. Greenough and J. Juraska, Ed., Developmental NeuroPsychobiology. Academic Press, New York. pp. 213-239.
Yawning as a stereotyped action pattern and releasing stimulus. R. R. Provine. Ethology, 72, 109-122.
Yawning: Effects of stimulus interest. R. R. Provine and H. B. Hamernik. Bulletin of the Psychonomic Society, 24, 437-438.
1984Comparative analysis of the development of wing-flapping and flight in the fowl. R. R. Provine, C. L. Strawbridge, and B. J. Harrison. Developmental Psychobiology, 17, 1-10.
Wing-flapping during development and evolution. R. R. Provine. American Scientist, 72, 448-455.
1983Chicken muscular dystrophy: An inherited disorder of flight. R. R. Provine. Developmental Psychobiology, 16, 23-27.
Development of wing-flapping and flight: A review. R. R. Provine. Bird Behaviour, 5, 16-21.
1982Pre-flight development of bilateral wing coordination in the chick (Gallus domesticus): Effects of induced bilateral wing asymmetry. R. R. Provine. Developmental Psychobiology, 15, 245-255.
1981Development of wing-flapping and flight in normal and flap-deprived chicks (Gallus domesticus). R. R. Provine. Developmental Psychobiology, 14, 279-291.
Wing-flapping develops in chickens made flightless by feather mutations. R. R. Provine. Developmental Psychobiology, 14, 481-486.
Embryonic and postembryonic development. R. R. Provine. In W. J. Bell and K. G. Adiyodi, Ed., The American Cockroach, Chapman and Hall, London. pp. 399-423.
1980Development of between-limb movement synchronization in the chick embryo. R. R. Provine. Developmental Psychobiology, 13, 151-163.
1979Crossing the midline: Limits of early eye-hand behavior. R. R. Provine and J. Westerman. Child Development, 50, 437-441.
"Wing-flapping" develops in wingless chicks. R. R. Provine. Behavioral and Neural Biology, 27, 233-237.
1977Behavioral development of the cockroach (Periplaneta americana). R. R. Provine. Journal of Insect Physiology, 23, 213-220.
Development of spinal cord bioelectric activity in spinal chick embryos and its behavioral implications. R. R. Provine and L. Rogers. Journal of Neurobiology, 8, 217-228.
1976Eclosion and hatching in cockroach first instar larvae: A stereotyped pattern of behavior. R. R. Provine. Journal of Insect Physiology, 22, 127-131.
Formation of cockroach interganglionic connectives: An in vitro analysis. R. R. Provine, K. R. Seshan and L. Aloe. Journal of Comparative Neurology, 165, 17-30.
Development of function in nerve nets. R. R. Provine. In J. Fentress, Ed., Simpler Networks and Behavior, Sinauer Associates, Sunderland, Mass., pp. 203-220.
1975On voluntary ocular accommodation. R. R. Provine and J. M. Enoch. Perception and Psychophysics, 17, 209-212.
Reprinted in: T. Barber, L. DiCara, J. Kamiya, N. Miller, D. Shapiro and J. Stoyva, Ed., 1975 Biofeedback and Self-Control Annual, Aldine Publishing Co., Chicago (1976).
Shift in the peak of the photopic Stiles-Crawford function with marked accommodation. K. Blank, R. R. Provine and J. M. Enoch. Vision Research, 15, 499-507.
1974Structural and electrophysiological properties of nymphal and adult insect medial neurosecretory cells: An in vitro analysis. K. R. Seshan, R. R. Provine and R. Levi-Montalcini. Brain Research, 78, 359-376.
Emergence of geometric patterns in insect nerve nets: An in vitro analysis. R. R. Provine, K. R. Seshan and L. Aloe. Brain Research, 80, 328-334.
1973Spontaneous bioelectric activity in long term cultures of the embryonic insect central nervous system. R. R. Provine, L. Aloe, and K. R. Seshan. Brain Research, 56, 364-370.
Neurophysiological aspects of behavior development in the chick embryo. R. R. Provine. In G. Gottlieb, Ed., Behavioral Embryology, Academic Press, New York, 77-102.
1972Ontogeny of bioelectric activity in the spinal cord of the chick embryo and its behavioral implications. R. R. Provine. Brain Research, 41, 365-378.
The levels of the brain specific proteins S-100 and 14-3-2 in the developing chick spinal cord. T. S. Cicero and R. R. Provine. Brain Research, 44, 294-298.
Neural correlates of embryonic motility in the chick. K. L. Ripley and R. R. Provine. Brain Research, 45, 127-134.
Hatching behavior of the chick (Gallus domesticus): plasticity of the rotatory component. R. R. Provine. Psychonomic Science, 29, 27-28.
1971Embryonic spinal cord: Synchrony and spatial distribution of polyneuronal burst discharges. R. R. Provine. Brain Research, 29, 155-158.
1970Electrical activity in the spinal cord of the chick embryo in situ. R. R. Provine, S. C. Sharma, T. T. Sandel, and V. Hamburger. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, USA, 65, 508-515.
Unit activity of the isolated spinal cord of chick embryo in situ. S. C. Sharma, R. R. Provine, V. Hamburger, and T. T. Sandel. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, USA, 66, 40-47.
Robert R. Provine Curriculum Vitae