Close-up of an overjoyed woman laughing while sitting on the couch.

The Science of Ha!

Cost
50.00

This course was available in the past and may be presented again as part of the Open Enrollment curriculum.

Science has split the atom, charted the cosmos and plumbed the mysteries of life. The one thing it can’t do is tell a joke. While artificial intelligence can generate mild quips (“Siri, will you marry me?” “My end-user license agreement is commitment enough for me”), when it comes to originality, its funny fully fails. Why? Because even the world’s most powerful computer can’t match the human brain’s ability and agility in humor: instantaneously ferreting out unexpected associations then gauging whether other humans will find them funny, lame or incomprehensible. With the help of Monty Python, Indiana Jones, Amy Schumer and HAL 5000, this talk explores the roles of dopamine, deception, pattern recognition, rejection of the random and perspective shift in both comedy and science, revealing how our compulsion to find meaning in everything, which has fueled science’s greatest achievements, is also the weakness that provides the foundation for all humor.

Notes

Online registration deadline: Thurs, Mar 16, 5PM CT