Why Do We Laugh?

Some questions are so big they’re existential, meaning that they get right to the heart of human existence. These are also sometimes called philosophical questions, so for this episode we called up a professor of philosophy, Scott Hershovitz, who teaches at the University of Mich ... Show More

Why did the dinosaurs go extinct? Many of you have learned about the meteorite that scientists say hit the earth 66 million years ago and killed off many dinosaur species. But some dinosaurs survived, and the birds you see flying around today are their direct descendants! In this ... Show More

Why are brothers and sisters so annoying? Why do siblings often look a lot alike? Why do siblings fight? Can your sister be your best friend? Why do we fight with our siblings even if we love them? But Why takes a look at the sibling relationship with Susan Dominus, author of The ... Show More

<p>Can you tickle yourself? Probably not. Almost everybody is ticklish, but what’s happening to us is a bit of a mystery.</p><p>See <a href="https://omnystudio.com/listener">omnystudio.com/listener</a> for privacy information.</p> 

Laughter is a great way to release stress, bond with friends & family, and just have fun. It's also why some people end up accidentally WETTING themselves! On this episode of WHO SMARTED?, we'll visit a disastrous rehearsal of Romeo & Juliet -- where the problem isn't that Juliet ... Show More

Why do we laugh, and what makes something funny? A psychologist, a neuroscientist and satirist Mark Humphries weigh in on humour and the brain. 

<p>Laughter is like a language and humans are really good at understanding it. </p><br><p>In this episode, Molly and co-host Milla decode different kinds of laughs, from uncontrollable goofy laughter to chuckles that make others feel good. </p><br><p>They’ll meet laugh experts So ... Show More

Laughter: We do it spontaneously, we do it forcefully, we do it with each other and by ourselves. But why did we evolve to giggle in the first place? Emily and Regina explore the evolutionary underpinnings of laughter — from chimpanzees to modern-day humans — and the ways it unit ... Show More

<p>Get ready for some smiles! We’re looking at the science of two things that bring us joy: tickles and cuteness. </p><br><p>We’ll explain why tickles make us giggle and why you can’t tickle yourself. Then we’ll talk about what makes cute things cute and why sometimes we want to ... Show More

<p>Laugh and the world laughs with you, or so you might think. But watch any good comedian on TV by yourself and chances are you’ll laugh a lot less than if you were sat in a lively comedy crowd watching the same comedian in the flesh.</p><p> But why is that? Do people from diffe ... Show More

The Science of LaughterBrian Cox and Robin Ince return for a new series of science/comedy chat. They are joined on stage, appropriately enough, by comedian Frank Skinner, as they look at the science of what makes us laugh, why we laugh at all, and whether humour and laughter are ... Show More

<p>Hahaha! The average four-year-old child laughs 300 times a day. By contrast, it takes more than two months for the average 40-year-old adult to laugh that many times. This week, we talk with behavioral scientist <a href="https://www.gsb.stanford.edu/faculty-research/faculty/je ... Show More