Articles by John Simon
Additional Capabilities of a Comprehensive Laughter Theory
Laughter appears a rather simple, almost automatic behavior, but scholars have struggled to explain it. Most theoretical approaches answer some of the questions raised but fall short of being comprehensive. There are several topics related to laughter and humor that an exhaustive theory must tackle.
What Else Makes a Laughter Theory Comprehensive?
Scholars attempting to understand why we laugh have failed to develop a single, complete theory. Problems are often the result of diverse causal factors and consequences associated with this behavior. Here I briefly describe some topics scholars address as they attempt to comprehend this enigmatic behavior.
What Else Makes a Laughter Theory Comprehensive?
Scholars attempting to understand why we laugh have failed to develop a single, complete theory. Problems are often the result of diverse causal factors and consequences associated with this behavior. Here I briefly describe some topics scholars address as they attempt to comprehend this enigmatic behavior.
What Makes a Laughter Theory Comprehensive?
This blog has taken in-depth looks at numerous subjects relating to laughter and humor. The big-picture view should consider what a comprehensive theory of laughter must able to explain. Scholars attempting to understand this enigmatic behavior often address nine common topics. This blog has examined laughter and humor from a variety of perspectives, usually by taking a deep dive into specific examples.
Your Emoticons and Emojis Help Inform Laughter Theory
Many present-day writers use acronyms or emojis to express sentiments of amusement, humor, and laughter. Emojis' close association with writing suggests that genuine laughter is yet another form of communication. If true, it restricts the number of theoretical approaches suited to explain laughter’s origin and purpose. Laughter theorists have long separated themselves into one of two camps. Members of the first maintain the primal or primary function of laughter is one of communication.
The Critic’s Notebook
Nonfiction: “A Seditious and Sinister Tribe”: The Crimean Tatars and their Khanate, by Donald Rayfield (Reaktion Books): The Khanate of Crimea, whose history Donald Rayfield explores in great depth in his new book, was the most powerful successor state to the Mongol Golden Horde.
Central bank independence and credibility matters. Here’s why
Powell has so far resisted, but Trump has also threatened to replace him with someone who will do what he asks. In Australia, after the Reserve Bank’s surprise decision to hold interest rates steady this month, some commentators have wondered if the central bank had “betrayed” Australians. Treasurer Jim Chalmers pointedly remarked: It’s not the result millions of Australians were hoping for or what the market was expecting.
Central bank independence and credibility matters. Here’s why
Olga Kashubin/Shutterstock In the United States, President Donald Trump has been pressuring the chairman of the US Federal Reserve, Jerome Powell, to slash interest rates. This is partly to ease the interest payments on the ballooning US government debt. Powell has so far resisted, but Trump has also threatened to replace him with someone who will do what he asks.
Central bank independence and credibility matters. Here’s why
In the United States, President Donald Trump has been pressuring the chairman of the US Federal Reserve, Jerome Powell, to slash interest rates. This is partly to ease the interest payments on the ballooning US government debt. Powell has so far resisted, but Trump has also threatened to replace him with someone who will do what he asks.
Exploring the Geometric Mean of Grouped Data
DOI: https://doi.org/10.33423/jabe.v27i3.7649 Keywords: business, economics, geometric mean, grouped data, unbiased estimate, stock market data References Costa, J. (2018, March 23). Calculating Geometric Means (with online calculator).
New survey shows business outlook is weakening and uncertainty rising as the trade war bites
There is even uncertainty about the uncertainty. The Reserve Bank of Australia, for example, noted in the minutes from its April 1 meeting: The most significant development in the period leading up to the meeting had been the significant rise in uncertainty about global trade policy, although the effect of this on sentiment and economic developments in Australia was not yet clear.
New survey shows business outlook is weakening and uncertainty rising as the trade war bites
Uncertainty is everywhere these days. There is even uncertainty about the uncertainty. The Reserve Bank of Australia, for example, noted in the minutes from its April 1 meeting[1]: The most significant development in the period leading up to the meeting had been the significant rise in uncertainty about global trade policy, although the effect of this on sentiment and economic developments in Australia was not yet clear.
“Week in review,” by Suzanna Murawski
Recent stories of note: “‘Edvard Munch: Technically Speaking’ Review: Classic Themes, Vibrant Variations” M. J. Andersen, The Wall Street Journal With some of his most famous paintings bearing titles such as Anxiety (1894), Jealousy (1895), Separation (1896), and, of course, The Scream (1893), it’s fair that many think of Edvard Munch first and foremost as a painter of emotions. But at the Harvard Art Museums, a new exhibition of the Norwegian painter’s work emphasizes his technique and process.
The Critic’s Notebook
Nonfiction: Beauty and the Gods: A History from Homer to Plato, by Hugo Shakeshaft (Princeton University Press):In the modern academy it falls to philosophy to teach us about beauty, in bloodless prose, while most art and literary historians scrupulously avoid aesthetic judgments.
Halide Vapor Phase Epitaxy of Ge from an Elemental Source
Introduction Click to copy section linkSection link copied! Halide vapor phase epitaxy (HVPE) can potentially lower the cost of epitaxial photovoltaic device manufacturing because of its high growth rates, (1−4) enabling high production throughput, and the use of lower cost elemental precursors.
Halide Vapor Phase Epitaxy of Ge from an Elemental Source
Introduction Click to copy section linkSection link copied! Halide vapor phase epitaxy (HVPE) can potentially lower the cost of epitaxial photovoltaic device manufacturing because of its high growth rates, (1−4) enabling high production throughput, and the use of lower cost elemental precursors.
Simon Law Firm's 9-Figure Trifecta
John G. Simon is an adjunct professor of law at St. Louis University School of Law and a frequent webinar presenter for Trial Guides. The firm’s three recent trial outcomes are case studies of the strategies covered in his lectures and webinars. Trial Guides is honored to feature the work of some of the greatest legal minds of our generation. Among them is John G.
After working for the RBA for 30 years, here’s how I’d make it more accountable
How can we tell if the Reserve Bank of Australia — which sets the interest rates that shape our national and household budgets — is doing a good job? That’s partly what the Albanese government set out to test in of the bank in 2022. When that review reported back last year, many people were surprised it devoted so much of its attention to governance and culture, rather than things such as its inflation target, which helps the bank set interest rates.
Reply: Late Recurrence of Anisometropic Amblyopia
Introduction We thank Dr. Arnold for his letter and astute comments. He raises an important point: we don't really know in advance which children may require treatment for future amblyopia recurrence. The child we described had no evidence of anterior segment pathology, eyelid lesions, or birth history to explain the refractive asymmetry. We were especially surprised because he had responded to glasses so well for so long.
From little things big things grow
Disclaimer: The work has been produced by Reserve Bank of Australia staff in the course of their employment or engagement by the Reserve Bank of Australia. However, the views expressed in this version of the work do not necessarily represent the views of the Reserve Bank of Australia. The Reserve Bank of Australia does not give any warranty nor accept any liability in relation to the contents of this work. No abstract is available for this article.
The Critic’s Notebook
Nonfiction: To the Linksland (30th Anniversary Edition), by Michael Bamberger (Avid Reader Press): As all who play golf know, there’s more to the game than just the game. For golfers, golf is not subculture but culture itself, and nowhere is that more true than in Scotland, home of the game’s invention. To understand that culture, nothing can beat a trip to those fabled lands, but reading Michael Bamberger’s To the Linksland might be a close second.
Late Recurrence of Anisometropic Amblyopia
Introduction Although amblyopia is often thought to stabilize once a patient reaches their teenage years, a growing body of literature is exploring the efficacy of treatment in preteens and teenagers. Our report explores the case of a child whose anisometropic amblyopia recurred at 15 years old and his response to refractive correction alone. Case Report A 3-year-old boy was referred to the last author by his pediatrician after a failed vision screening.
Sunken boats smell of diesel fuel Original
Remove vessels from location near Matlacha Pass John Simon Fort Myers News-Press I launch my kayaks at the Matlacha Community Park at the paddlecraft launch.I row out to North Matlacha Pass to harvest oysters during the season which just opened this September, one year after Hurricane Ian. As I pass under the small second bridge I pass by many docked boats. I was very surprised to see at least four of these boats still sunken, partially submerged and a heavy smell of diesel.
Modeling and design of III-V heterojunction solar cells for enhanced performance
Highlights • Computational modeling and experimental testing of rear heterojunction solar cells • Efficiency is a function of emitter doping and energy band offsets • Model results inform the development of a 27% efficient GaAs cell grown by HVPE • Model results developed using III-Vs are potentially applicable to other materials Summary Heterojunctions can increase the efficiency of solar cell devices relative to homojunctions, but there is a large parameter space with significant tradeoffs...
Analysis of Crystalline Defects Caused by Growth on Partially Planarized Spalled (100) GaAs Substrates
Altmetric share Share announcement Help format_quote Cite thumb_up ... Endorse textsms ... Comment Need Help? Support Find support for a specific problem in the support section of our website. Get Support Feedback Please let us know what you think of our products and services. Give Feedback Information Visit our dedicated information section to learn more about MDPI. Get Information clear Font Type: Arial Georgia Verdana Line Spacing: Column Width: Open AccessArticle by Jacob T.
American Innovation Can Counter China’s BRI
China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) was launched in 2013 as a trillion-dollar mega strategy to build infrastructure and influence across Africa, Asia, the Middle East, Europe, and Latin America. The BRI is a central aspect of President Xi Jinping’s vision for an ascendant China. It is meant to strengthen economic, political, and military linkages to Beijing through development, especially across the Global South. Read in The National Interest
American Innovation Can Counter China’s BRI
China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) was launched in 2013 as a trillion-dollar mega strategy to build infrastructure and influence across Africa, Asia, the Middle East, Europe, and Latin America. The BRI is a central aspect of President Xi Jinping’s vision for an ascendant China. It is meant to strengthen economic, political, and military linkages to Beijing through development, especially across the Global South.
Humor is such an important source of happiness and well-being that you’d think its definition would generally be agreed upon. In fact, this has not been case. Even laughter and humor researchers tend to refrain from defining humor, as no single interpretation has proved acceptable to a majority of the community’s members (Apte, 1985). A search for any definition brings most people to a dictionary.
As a general rule, we tend to admire a bit of pluck and verve. Most parents understand the importance of their children being self-assured. Believing in oneself facilitates taking on new challenges, exploring new territory, and building relationships with new acquaintances. But, as with every other personality trait, pluckiness can sometimes run amok. Confidence morphs into overconfidence and becomes every bit as counterproductive as the self-doubt one hoped to prevent in the first place.
When Laughter Uplifts Ourselves and Others
The Mutual Vulnerability Theory of Laughter makes some interesting predictions. In defining laughter as a vocal affirmation of mutual vulnerability, and a means by which we might rebuild the status relationship that existed prior to a shift in status, it anticipates four motivations for its expression. I’ve discussed one of these multiple times in prior posts—lifting laughter.
Laughter Can Provoke Very Different Emotional Reactions
I’ve come to believe that laughter is best understood as a vocal affirmation of mutual vulnerability. Having discussed “vulnerability” at some length in prior posts, I’d like to relate what I mean by “mutual” and how it helps explain laughter’s ability to generate both joy and sorrow in those who hear it.
Nonfiction Book Review: Lincoln and the Fight for Peace by John Avlon. Simon & Schuster, $30 (368p) ISBN 978-1-982108-12-0
John Avlon. Simon & Schuster, $30 (368p) ISBN 978-1-982108-12-0 CNN anchor Avlon ( Washington’s Farewell) studies in this revelatory history the “unfinished symphony” of Abraham Lincoln’s efforts to forge a just and lasting peace in the waning days of the Civil War.
Our Favorite Comedies Are Chock Full of Social Calamities
Take a moment to consider your favorite television comedies. What do they all share in common? Characters. Plural. Yes, individual cast members can have their shining moments. They’ll bring you to laughter with a display of physical, emotional, or cognitive vulnerability. But most of the time, they are interacting with others, being influenced by others, or hoping to influence others. The vulnerabilities they exhibit are often, to some degree, social in nature.
When Social Missteps Become a Source of Amusement
In past blogs, I have suggested that laughter expresses a sense of shared frailty or limitation. It can be a fitting reminder whenever our status is noticeably raised or lowered relative to that of others. For convenience, I categorized various types of vulnerabilities into four general themes: physical, emotional, cognitive, and the topic of this post, social.
Laughing at Senior Moments and Fish Out of Water
There seems a strong link between, for lack of a better term, stupidity and laughter. Humans have found amusement in cognitive shortfalls of one sort or another from the day our ancestors came down from the trees. Which I believe was a Tuesday. Established laughter theories explain this relationship in various ways. However, the Mutual Vulnerability Theory, if correct, seems particularly well suited to the challenge.
You’re Mad as Hell, and They’re Laughing…at You!
If you’re like most people, your emotions sometimes get the better of you. A driver inadvertently cuts you off in traffic, you contend with one too many interruptions while trying to meet a deadline, or a kid won’t stop kicking the back of your plane seat. Try as you might, feelings of tearful frustration or menacing anger bubble up to the surface. In what seems an odd, and perhaps infuriating, transposition, such outward expressions of despair are sometimes met with laughter.
Why Our Emotional Glitches Often Generate Amusement
Source: Source: Andrea Piacquadio/Pexels If laughter evolved as a means of expressing mutual vulnerability, then we should find it resulting from all sorts of shortcomings. Some of these will be physical failings, but they will also include emotional traits that are perceived, in some way, as inappropriate. Emotions can be misapplied, too mild, or too intense for the situation, putting our bodies or reproductive potential at risk. As such, they may become fair game for both laughter and humor.
Understanding Performance Comedy
When asked to think of comedy, many of us will key in on the standards: comedic movies, television sitcoms, live stand-up comedians, and the like. But there are numerous entertainers who imbue traditionally “serious” performance genres with a humorous component. A quick search on YouTube for The Smothers Brothers, Victor Borge, or Paul Hunt will give you an idea of this type of transformation.
Laughter, Humor, and Status
In my first post, I argued that laughter evolved as a way of reminding others of shared vulnerabilities. I went on to define vulnerability and suggested that it might be broadly subdivided into physical, emotional, cognitive, and social forms, albeit with much intermingling and overlap. Further, I suggested that we invariably recognize differing degrees of vulnerability.
The Fundamentals of Physical Humor
The central premise of evolutionary psychology is that our behavior is inextricably linked to the pursuit of goals prescribed, in large part, by our evolutionary history. We are each the product of ancestral lineages whose members succeeded in a dozen or so fundamental pursuits.
Laughter’s Essential Ingredient
Source: Anete Lusina/Pexels It’s always a good sign when a critical element of understanding in one realm of human behavior also reveals itself in another. Such is the case for vulnerability. It has recently, thanks in no small part to the research and writings of Dr. Brené Brown, become a much-appreciated facet of the human condition.
Reviving the Heart of the Church
Sabbath School Alive! is the initiative of the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists (GC) to revitalize Sabbath Schools worldwide. What should be an indispensable dimension of the worship experience has become, in many spheres, relegated to an optional pre-game show for the church service.
Curious About Laughter? You’re in Good Company
Source: Image by Tawny Nina Botha from Pixabay As the name suggests, this blog is loosely patterned on an imagined introductory university course meant to acquaint students with the fundamentals of laughter and humor (L&H)…as I understand them, of course. With that, I thought you’d like to know who might be sharing the classroom with you. It’s a rather diverse group, for everyone ponders these facets of the human experience at one time or another.
What You “Say” With Laughter
Every other week I come across an article or video referencing laughter or humor. Pundits disagree on whether a politician’s sarcastic responses helped or hurt her debate performance. A movie producer claims a sexual misconduct allegation stemmed from misinterpreted, but good-humored banter. Or a round table of stand-up comedians express their frustration with today’s “hypersensitive” audiences.
The Adventist Church's Executive Committee elects Erton Köhler and Paul Douglas to Key Administrative Positions
The 2021 Spring Meeting of the General Conference (GC) Executive Committee recently took place on April 13–14. The session was conducted virtually to adapt to the current COVID-19 pandemic.
A Portrait of Gil Green
Dear Reader, we make this and other articles available for free online to serve those unable to afford or access the print edition of Monthly Review. If you read the magazine online and can afford a print subscription, we hope you will consider purchasing one. Please visit the MR store for subscription options. Thank you very much. —Eds. by Michael Myerson and John J. Simon (Jan 01, 2021) Michael Myerson is an author and lifelong activist for civil rights, peace, and labor rights.
Nonfiction Book Review: This Is the Voice by John Colapinto. Simon & Schuster, $28 (320p) ISBN 978-1-982128-74-6
John Colapinto. Simon & Schuster, $28 (320p) ISBN 978-1-982128-74-6 “The voice is a vital clue to character and personality—to fundamental identity,” writes journalist Colapinto ( Becoming a Neurosurgeon) in this fascinating exploration of the human voice.
PFAS Experts Symposium: Statements on regulatory policy, chemistry and analytics, toxicology, transport/fate, and remediation for per‐ and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) contamination issues
COMMENTARY John A. Simon Corresponding Author E-mail address: jsimon@nathaninc.com Nathan Associates Inc, Arlington, VA Correspondence John A. Simon, Nathan Associates Inc., 1777 N. Kent Street, Arlington, VA 22209.
Hand-Washing is Crucial to Combatting Coronavirus
In high-income countries, COVID-19 has overwhelmed health systems, and thousands have died despite having access to some of the best health care money can buy. As coronavirus spreads through countries with fewer resources, especially low-income countries, scarce health system resources may leave them much less equipped to handle an influx of people with COVID-19. High population density, which increases the risk of transmission of coronavirus, is another challenge.
Getting WASH into Health Care Facilities: An Urgent Global Health Need
by John Simon and Susan K. Barnett February 22, 2020 Even the possibility that health care facilities would not have water, soap and toilets sounds ludicrous. But the widespread lack of access to Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene, known within global health and development circles as WASH, is a reality that impacts health around the world, complicating infection prevention, challenging efforts to contain pandemics, and contributing to the spread of antibiotic resistance.
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