The introduction of Ha! The Science of Why We Laugh by Scott Weems begins with a humorous anecdote regarding innovative comedian Lenny Bruce and sustain a high level of humor across the book, largely spanning a minor difference between revelation and entertainment (Weems 11). The author claims humor and its greatest common sign – laughter are end-results of retaining brain which is dependent on conflict. However, such conflict is necessary since it promotes adaptability. Moreover, humor is largely linked with almost all element of human cognition. Similarly, humor offers the strongest method to remain cognitively intelligent and it is robustly correlated to sharpness. Moreover, the author noted that almost all elements of human lives are advanced by concentrating on humor. The author also delivers an idea about the diversity of humor dispensation, given the various type of humor such as pratfall and pun, and its different delivery channel from verbal word to vision (Weems 13). Therefore, he noted that humor is a type of IQ test that is a subject of delightful French movie Ridicule. More importantly, the book provides a scrutiny on the key issues of human. In addition, it offers an investigation of humor in human. In addition, it delivers an overview of the medical, psychological, and social advantages of being extra jovial. The main concept presented by the author is that humor is a practice of incongruity-resolution that offers both creative thinking and pattern recognition.
Analysis portions of the annotation may focus on a specific chapter
The book describes humor as a course of incongruity-resolution. The author’s attitude is to observe Incongruity Theory via the concept of neuroscientific study. Observing humorous circumstances especially paying attention to jokes, it correlates and transpires with advanced action in the anterior cingulate which the conflict resolution epicenter of the brain (Weems 133). The book also suggest that this center is demonstrably active in case human beings are unfilled challenges such as Secluded Semantic Secondary responsibility such as discovering a word that link three others such as heart, potato, and tooth are interlinked by the term sweet. Besides, the brain also produces a wide range of possible answers which are referred the Construction process but since humor functions through incongruity, human anticipations are unavoidably dashed when the event, action and punch line flouts such expectation producing a surprise or reckoning (Weems 135). Essentially, surprise only is not adequate for humor hence Resolution is needed further because it is a change in perspective. Therefore, larger changes produce more hilarious jokes.
Summary of key ideas of each chapter
The chapters provide an idea that the brain is the source of laughter. Fundamentally, when it interacts with diversity of conflicts of ideas, the anterior cingulate - the conflict sensor in the brain fires up and delivers a dosage of dopamine which is a feel-good substance that instantly contributes to laughter. In this regard, comic materials trigger specific parts of the brain (Weems 146). The impacts of the puns are chemical particularly production of dopamine. Importantly, the concept of humor emerges from surprise and conflict and in doing so offer a huge number of jokes which are adequate to provide discussion regarding language and laugh which is a product of humor (Weems 156). The book also explains that computers are not effective in producing jokes since they are deprived off the actual information to understand what is poignant and insightful as well as what is stupid (Weems 190).
Work cited
Weems, Scott. Ha!: The science of when we laugh and why. Basic Books (AZ), 2014.
