ABSTRACT
What is humour and comedy, and what makes us laugh and smile? More fundamentally, what is a smile and a laugh? What is a joke, and why does it work? Is laughter contagious, and what’s the most reliable way of evoking laughter? What are the different types of comedy, and what makes them different? And if there is such a thing as sense of humour, can we measure it? This chapter attempts to answer these questions, using research and evidence and illustrations from stand-up, literature, television and film.
