13 Very Serious Facts About Humor And Laughter

What makes comedy funny? What’s the point of humor? How can we be funnier? Why even bother? These are questions that haunt us. We at Cracked think a lot about comedy. Sometimes we think about it too much, and the whole concept is ruined for us. And we want to pass on that misery to you.
Scientists have done a surprising amount of research on comedy, and we would hate for their hard work to go unnoticed. So, here’s a collection of research findings that we found entertaining (if not very funny) about humor, playfulness, and laughter.
Our main takeaways? Humor is an essential part of humanity that positively affects our health and relationships. Humor needs to be used intentionally to be effective, but the consideration pays off in much-needed laughter. And you need to read more Cracked.com articles to have a long and high-quality life. Don’t believe us? Well, listen to the experts…
Students like when teachers tell jokes

Source: PLoSONE
Stick it out if you want to laugh at them.

Source: Emotion
Intelligence

Source: Humor
Why do squats when you can do smiles?

Source: Scientific American
Humor

Source: ScienceDirect
Humor: can't live without it.

Source: ScienceDaily
People love a tease

Source: EurekAlert!
Humor's good for political memory

Source: Journal of Communication
Funny tweets mean political defeat

Source: Communication Research Reports
Being immoral can be funny

Source: Psychological Science
Laugh away your stress

Source: PLoS One
You will fall for a laugh track

Source: Current Biology
Humor is child's play

Source: Behavior Research Methods