Can a chuckle be a catalyst for a revolution? Joel Warner and I take a look at whether humor is a thermometer or a thermostat: Let’s consider the case of Serbia in 1999. The small Balkan state was in its 10th year in the autocratic grip of President Slobodan Milošević. Four recent wars with neighboring […]
The nice people at ESPN’s 538 site came to Boulder to look at our research examining how to make people funnier. I hope to have more results soon. In the meantime, come to our Humor Hackfest (5/12), which is part of Boulder Startup Week.
In recent years, scholars, policy makers and the general public have learned about unethical behavior across academic disciplines — creating a crisis of confidence in the reliability of research findings. Whether due to publication pressures or the pursuit of fame, researchers have been caught performing data acrobatics ranging from “p-hacking,” trimming data or conditions, to […]
The Humor Research Lab and Quick Left have teamed up to host a Humor Hackfest at Boulder Startup Week. The hackfest is a signature event at Quick Left’s office (Pearl St. and 9th) on Tuesday, May 12th from 6 -10 pm. Sign-up HERE. Would your life be better if you were funnier? Let’s make the […]
The University of Colorado did a nice profile about my research. Here it is:
In this article, Joel Warner and I examine possibly the oldest and most reliable joke form: the ever glorious, occasionally treasured and often reviled “stupidity jokes.” “Nearly every country has stupidity jokes,” [Christie] Davies told us when we visited him in Reading, England. The fact that he’s uncovered a nearly universal kind of joke is […]
Although Rufus may not be tittering at your puns and Princess may not enjoy your Knock Knock jokes, it’s likely that they still have a sense of humor. From observing Koko the gorilla to tickling rats, scientists from all over the country are trying to get their paws on what makes up the mammalian sense of humor. Scientists […]
Valentine’s Day is looming. Regardless of what you think about the day, it’s a time of year that people give thought to their relationships. In a past blog, I have talked about the value of a good sense of humor – and how it is important to relationships. Recently, I was interviewed about humor and […]
