Using the latest evidence, provine describes laughter using sonic analysis and opera scores, evaluates whether you can laugh you way to health, considers what laughter shows about neuropathology, and suggests how to change environments to increase laughter. Laughter has surprisingly little to do with jokes and funny stories. A scientific investigation, reveals recent research findings on. Provine at university of maryland, baltimore county. A scientific investigation, reveals recent research findings on laughter in a. Drawing upon ten years of research into this most commonyet complex and often puzzlinghuman hehavior, dr. Robert provine, the worlds leading scientific expert on laughter, investigates such aspects of his subject as its evolution, its role in social relationships, its contagiousness, it neural mechanisms. Unlike english, spanish or swahili, we dont have to learn to speak it.
A psychology professor, he set about trying to understand what triggers giggles and guffaws and wrote a definitive book on the subject. The two may appear inseparable, but one of the revelations of this book is that the standup comedy model of laughter as a. Provine, a neuroscientist and professor of psychology at the university of maryland, baltimore county, studies the development and evolution of the nervous system and behavior, including human social behavior. Oct 25, 2001 buy laughter reprint by provine, robert r isbn. Provine has authored more than fifty research articles concerning developmental neuroscience and animal and human behavior. In one series of urban safaris, he set out to study humans in their natural habitat of shopping malls, city sidewalks, and the university. Provines tight, witty prose leads the reader through a series of simple observational studies and hypotheses that exemplify scientific precepts and weave aspects of philosophy, evolution, neurology, and.
Provines tight, witty prose leads the reader through a series of simple observational studies and hypotheses that exemplify scientific precepts and weave aspects of. It is a response to certain external or internal stimuli. Robert provine, the worlds leading scientific expert on laughter, investigates such. Robert provine, the worlds leading scientific expert on laughter, investigates such aspects of his subject as its evolution, its. Yawning, laughing, hiccupping, and beyond, and more on. Inspire a love of reading with prime book box for kids discover delightful childrens books with prime book box, a subscription that delivers new books every 1. Robert provine, an authority on laughter, is dead at 76 the. My approach to understanding laughter is one that a visiting extraterrestrial might take, he wrote. Robert provine, professor of neurobiology and psychology at the university of maryland, has. Robert provine, professor of psychology and neuroscience at the university of maryland, baltimore county, has studied this complex and often puzzling phenomenon, and through his research has established himself as the worlds leading expert on laughing. Provine s 2014 book curious behavior, brought together 20 years of ethological and laboratory research on laughter, yawning, tickling, emotional tearing, and related topics. Robert provine, scholar of laughter, yawns, and hiccups. Robert provine, an authority on laughter, is dead at 76 the new.
The first book to establish laughter as a topic of scientific worth, laughter also. Robert provine, professor of neurobiology and psychology at the university of maryland, has dedicated himself to the pursuit of this complex and often puzzling phenomenon, and through his research has established himself as the worlds leading expert on laughter. Jul 01, 1999 provine delves into all the aspects of laughter. Laughter was selected as one of the 25 books to remember from 2000 by the new york public library, and his recent articles are reprinted in two leading anthologies, the best american science writing 2006 and the best american nonrequired reading 2006. Sep 01, 2012 what lies behind the spontaneity of laughter. Robert provine, a psychology professor at the university of maryland, baltimore county, whose examination of laughter led to a series of studies and popular books and helped to create the modern science of humor, died october 17, the new york times reported. Oct 22, 2019 n euroscientist robert provine, known for his groundbreaking research on common but mysterious human behavior such as laughter and yawning, died october 17 of complications from nonhodgkins lymphoma, according to the washington post. The first book to establish laughter as a topic of scientific worth, laughter includes such esoterica as the history of holy laughter. Robert provine, phd, a psychologist at the university of marylandbaltimore county, elucidates these questions in his aptly titled book. He has appeared on good morning america, abc world news tonight, 2020, and scientific american frontiers. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders. A scientific investigation is his warm andof coursefunny report on how and why we giggle and snort with such regularity. Plato, aristotle, hobbes, and kant recognized the duality of laughter as exuberantly pleasurable but also maliciously powerful, fearing its potential darker and subversive purposes.
Using the latest evidence, much presented for the first time, robert provine evaluates whether you can laugh your way to health, considers what laughter shows about neuropathology, and suggests how to change environments to increase laughter. Provine discovered that no scientist had ever looked into the weird, uncontrollable, and very human. Laughter is a decidedly social signal, not an egocentric expression of emotion. He decided to study laughter instead, taking his methods out into the world and, through a series of studies and popular books, helping to create.
A scientific investigation robert provine did something that no one in the 2000year history of pontificating about laughter had ever thought to do. Provine studied human social behaviors through innovative methods. Robert provine, the worlds leading scientific expert on laughter, investigates such aspects of his. Laughter is a physical reaction in humans consisting usually of rhythmical, often audible contractions of the diaphragm and other parts of the respiratory system. Robert provine passed away on october 17, 2019 at the age of 76 in columbia, maryland. He characterized this book as a celebration of undergraduate research at umbc because almost all of the research described was conducted with student collaborators. Robert provine, an authority on laughter, is dead at 76. A scientific investigation was selected as one of the 25 books to remember from 2000 by the new york public library, and his articles are reprinted in the best american science writing 2006 and the best. Provine evaluated the laugh andor smileevoking potency of laughter by observing responses of 128 undergraduates to laugh stimuli produced by a laugh box. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading laughter. Though it is one of the most common and identifiable human behaviors, laughter has, until recently, escaped the sort of scientific scrutiny that has dissected, examined, and explained nearly every other point on the rich spectrum of our characters. It gave our book excellent context, shares kostya kennedy, editorial director of time books. Provine has set himself the task of cracking the laugh code, as he calls it, rather than tackling the much more complex issue of humor. Robert provine, phd, a psychologist at the university of marylandbaltimore county, elucidates these questions in his aptly titled book laughter.
Robert provine, in an extract from his book, curious behaviour, explores the psychology of a gsoh. Laughter can arise from such activities as being tickled, or from humorous stories or thoughts. Provine is a fellow of the american association for the advancement of science and the. Robert provine was studying nerve cells for eight hours a day in a windowless lab when he made a keen observation that would alter his life, and the shape of social science. Provine embodied the spirit of the popular scientist, one who takes his or her pursuits out of the laboratory and into the public square, from university libraries to public libraries, and from lecture halls to radio and television. His colleagues and friends at umbc and beyond will miss his brilliance, excitement for discoveries big and small, and great intellectual energy.
Apr 01, 2020 provine delves into all the aspects of laughter. The first book to establish laughter as a topic of scientific worth, laughter. Provine was a professor emeritus at the university of maryland at baltimore county, where he studied and taught for over 40 years after earning his ph d in psychology at washington. The walkietalkie theory is presented in his book laughter. Drawing upon ten years of research into this most commonyet complex and often puzzlinghuman phenomenon, dr. The book covers research about laughter as medicine, as a health remedy, as well as how the timing of jokes affects laughter. Dec 01, 2001 drawing upon ten years of research into this most commonyet complex and often puzzlinghuman phenomenon, dr. Laughter was 30 times more frequent in social than. Provine author of the book and i dropped the class after only twoweeks of. Provine author of the book and i dropped the class after only twoweeks of enrollment.
Robert provine, an authority on laughter, is dead at 76 a psychology professor, he set about trying to understand what triggers giggles and guffaws and wrote a definitive book on the subject. In the absence of stimulating media television, radio or books, people are about 30 times more likely to laugh when they are in a social situation than when they are alone. Basing his views on field research conducted in a broad array of social situations laughter being notoriously difficult to evoke in the laboratory, provine posits that we use it as a universal, preverbal means. Provine, the worlds leading scientific expert on laughter, investigates various aspects. Provine discovered that no scientist had ever looked into the weird, uncontrollable, and very human phenomenon of laughter, so he started off on his own. He was the author of two books for popular audiences, laughter. The book is written like a textbook but is structured in a novel format.
Robert provine, the worlds leading scientific expert on laughter, investigates such aspects of his subject as its evolution, its role in social relationships, its contagiousness, its neural mechanisms, and its health benefits. Since retiring, he continues to teach parttime, do a bit of research and writing, and remain engaged in the practice of science in the public arena providing popular accounts of. Robert provine, 1943 2019 association for psychological. One of the remarkable things about laughter, is that it occurs unconsciously. Provine 19432019 was a research professorprofessor emeritus at the university of maryland, baltimore county, where he studied the development and evolution of the nervous system. Provine, a neuroscientist who brought scientific rigor to the study of laughter, yawns, hiccups, and other universal human behaviors that had previously gone largely unexplored, died. Laughter is part of the universal human vocabulary.
Provine, a neuroscientist who brought scientific rigor to the study of laughter, yawns, hiccups and other universal human behaviors that had previously gone largely unexplored, died oct. A scientific investigation 00 edition 9780141002255 by na for up to 90% off at. Drawing upon ten years of research into this most commonyet complex and often puzzlinghuman behavior, dr. A scientific investigation book online at best prices in india on. A scientific investigation kindle edition by provine, robert r download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. The chapters are very short, but the amount of detail within one paragraph makes it nearly impossible to know. After excluding the vicarious social effects of media television, radio, books, etc. Robert provine is survived by his wife helen weems, daughter kimberly and soninlaw thomas lourenco, son robert and daughterinlaw elena provine, and three grandchildren. Provine the study of laughter provides a novel approach to the mechanisms and evolution of vocal production, perception and social behavior.
There are thousands of languages, hundreds of thousands of dialects, but everyone speaks laughter in pretty much the same way. Provines laughter research is revealing, engaging and original. Robert provine, a neuroscientist at the university of maryland, baltimore county and the author of laughter. I thought it was a really interesting and sometimes even humorous read. Robert provine did something that no one in the 2000year history of pontificating. The first book to establish laughter as a topic of scientific worth, laughter includes such. One neuroscientist explains the science of laughter here. A scientific investigation and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at. Robert provine was studying nerve cells for eight hours. Oct 28, 2019 robert raymond provine was born on may 11, 1943, in tulsa, okla. But surprisingly, only 10 to 15 percent of laughter is the result of someone making a joke, said baltimore neuroscientist robert provine, who has studied laughter for decades. Synopsis robert provine argues in this book that laughter is mostly about relationships, not jokes.