This is a summary of the book “The Humour Code: a global search for what makes things funny.” written by Peter McGraw and Joel Warner and published by Simon and Schuster in 2014. Comedians and common people alike explore what makes something funny, yet there is no science behind it. As journalists, the authors have traveled far and wide to decipher the secret of humour. Their journey has taken them to “clown brigade” in a Peruvian slum, found humour amid the strife of Intifada, and the Japanese hermetic humour. This has reinforced the assumption that humour and laughter are mystery. Business minded people might find insights into funny ads and folks dealing with customers might find the serious side of funny. Humour can ease tensions and increase trust. It can also be divisive and make bigotry more acceptable. Laughter enhances physical health, so why not try this?

In their journey to understand why people laugh, they investigated an epidemic of contagious laughter in Tanzania, met comedy directors in Japan, portrayed Boy George's dog in an improv theater skit in Los Angeles, and examined the fallout from newspaper cartoons mocking the prophet Mohammad in Denmark. Despite the existence of laughter in entertainment, marketing, and daily life, science has never definitively explained its evolution or why people find certain things funny. Humor is a delicate operation built on shared knowledge, assumptions, and innuendo. Philosophers like Aristotle and Plato proposed the "superiority theory," which suggests people laugh at the "misfortunes of others." Sigmund Freud theorized that jokes and laughter serve as escape valves for repressed emotions, but this does not explain why puns are funny. Philosopher Blaise Pascal's "incongruity theory" and Arthur Koestler's "benign violation" theory explain why people laugh when tickling them.

Humor has evolved as a social signal, a refined version of primates' panting during play-fights. Research by neuroscientist and psychologist Robert Provine supports this notion, finding that laughter is part of conversational repertoire and not a spontaneous outburst. Humor has two distinct types: spontaneous laughter, which appeared between two and four million years ago, and intentional laughter, which has been imitated intentionally to take advantage of its social-bonding effects.

Humor fosters positive feelings, which marketers exploit, spending upward of $60 billion on humorous ads in 2008. However, no definitive evidence proves that humor motivates people to buy products being advertised. Marketers face the danger that gags in their ads may keep viewers from taking their messages seriously. Instead, humorous advertising should use a "wedding toast" approach, starting with attention-grabbing jokes and then putting all kidding aside.

People laugh in good times and bad, and humor thrives in demanding situations. Humor can help endure tricky situations and protect brands, as seen when the USS Pueblo crew used humor to survive capture by North Korea.

Humor and coping mechanisms are linked, with humor serving as a psychological buffer and a defense mechanism against further trauma. It develops in infants between 10 and 20 weeks of age, but some experts argue that humor may not always be beneficial eventually, as it may discourage social change. For example, the "laughtivists" in Serbia used humor to reduce the fear barrier and lead to a revolt against dictator Slobodan Milošević.

However, humor can also be a double-edged sword. It can ease tensions and bring people together, but it can also divide and stir up conflict. Racist, sexist, and homophobic jokes can underscore differences, validate negative stereotypes, and ostracize whole groups of people. In 1979, Norman Cousins used comedy films as part of treatment for a patient with degenerative joint disease, highlighting the importance of humor in medicine. The idea that humor can boost health caught on. Laughter can play a crucial role in coping mechanisms and social change, but it is important to recognize the potential dangers and drawbacks of humor in various cultures.

Although, humor, as a form of laughter, has been used to promote health and wellbeing in various ways, including training health professionals and practicing "laughter yoga" in 72 countries and with some proponents arguing that humor can boost immune-system function, stave off illnesses, and decrease heart-disease risk, no definitive evidence has been found. Instead, humor is seen as an essential tool for human connection and can enhance emotional health. Psychologists like Steve Wilson see humor as an "adjunctive therapy" that can help main therapies work better. Humor also provides a perspective on difficulties and the whimsical side of life.

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