Prompt Cast
The Science of Funny Words: What Makes Some Words Funnier Than Others?
TLDR Researcher Chris Westbury constructed a mathematical model to predict the funniness of English words and found that they could be categorized into six clusters related to expletives, sex, the body, partying, animals, and insults. The funniness of a word is determined by its categorization and the form of the word, such as its length and the rarity of its individual sounds.
Timestamped Summary
00:00
A researcher wanted to figure out what makes things funny, specifically what makes some words funnier than others.
02:02
A researcher constructed a mathematical model to predict the funniness of English words, and came up with a list of the 10 funniest words, including "Up Chuck," "Boff," and "Giggle."
04:25
The incongruity theory suggests that something unexpected can often lead to laughter, and researcher Chris Westbury quantified this theory to predict the funniness of English words.
06:44
Researcher Chris Westbury has a polarizing effect on people, either fascinating them with his theories and mathematical explanations or making them want to avoid him completely.
08:29
Researcher Chris Westbury analyzed a subset of several hundred funny words and found that they could be categorized into six clusters related to expletives, sex, the body, partying, animals, and insults, but determining what makes a word funnier than another is still unclear.
10:52
The funniness of a word is determined by its categorization into one or more of six categories, and also by the form of the word, such as its length and the rarity of its individual sounds.
13:09
The funniness of words can be determined by their incongruity and the specific sounds they contain, and swapping out individual words can have a big impact on comedy.
Categories:
Society & Culture
