The search is on for the world's funniest joke in a new, large-scale study to find out what makes us laugh.
A scientific survey called Laugh Lab has just been launched as part of the UK Science Year. Members of the public from any country can log on to a Website, read some gags and then rate them on a "Laughometer" with a score of one to five. The survey also asks people to send in their favourite rib-ticklers to build up a joke database.
As well as rating the jokes, the public will be asked to complete a questionnaire to see how sense of humour varies with factors such as sex, age and nationality. Any patterns in response to different types of gags will also be revealed.
"Children, for example, find incongruity funny as in the `elephant in the fridge' joke," explained Dr Wiseman, professor of psychology at the University of Hertfordshire. (How do you know an elephant's been in your fridge? Footprints in the butter.) Adults may prefer aggression or "put down" jokes like "Q: Why don't sharks bite lawyers? A: Professional courtesy."
The serious side to humour is that laughter can be good for you. Research links reduced risk of heart disease with people who find life funny. Reaction to jokes is also helping in understanding the effects of brain damage. "Injury to the front part of the right brain hemisphere can mean you don't find jokes funny and that you laugh at inappropriate times," Dr Wiseman said.
Prominent scientists were invited to set the ball rolling by donating their best jokes. This was from geneticist Steve Jones: "Two cows in a field. One says to the other, `Daisy, I'm worried, I'm afraid we've got mad cow disease.' Daisy replies `Oh, there's nothing to worry about - we're giraffes.'"
"We are looking for at least 1,000 jokes to be submitted to get the experiment off to a flying start," said Dr Wiseman at the Festival of Science in Glasgow yesterday. "Each month we will announce which jokes received the highest Laughometer ratings. Then in September 2002 we will reveal the top entry and crown it the nation's funniest joke," he said.
A trusted student will vet the incoming comic offerings for taste and decency so that the show is kept clean, said Dr Wiseman.
The Laugh Lab can be contacted at www.laughlab.co.uk