Noun

Wikipedia has an article on: Laughter

Singular laughter

Plural uncountable

laughter (uncountable)

  1. The sound of laughing, produced by air so expelled; any similar sound.
    Their loud laughter betrayed their presence
  2. A movement (usually involuntary) of the muscles of the laughing face, particularly of the lips, with a peculiar expression of the eyes, indicating merriment, satisfaction or derision, and usually attended by a sonorous and interrupted expulsion of air from the lungs.
    • The act of laughter, which is a sweet contraction of the muscles of the face, and a pleasant agitation of the vocal organs, is not merely, or totally within the jurisdiction of ourselves. - Sir Thomas Browne
    • Archly the maiden smiled, and with eyes overrunning with laughter - Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
  3. (archaic) A reason for merriment
  4. (slang) A decidedly one-sided sports contest, especially where the winning team is able to score at will.
    The final score of the football game was 70-0; what a laughter it was.

From Wiktionary under the GNU Free Documentation License.
Thu Jun 11 05:04:50 2009

Laughter is an audible expression or appearance of happiness, or an inward feeling of joy (laughing on the inside). It may ensue (as a physiological reaction) from jokes, tickling, and other stimuli. Inhaling nitrous oxide can also induce laughter; other drugs, such as cannabis, can also induce episodes of strong laughter. Strong laughter can sometimes bring an onset of tears or even moderate muscular pain.

Laughter is a part of human behaviour regulated by the brain, helping humans clarify their intentions in social interaction and providing an emotional context to conversations. Laughter is used as a signal for being part of a group — it signals acceptance and positive interactions with others. Laughter is sometimes seemingly contagious, and the laughter of one person can itself provoke laughter from others as a positive feedback. This may account in part for the popularity of laugh tracks in situation comedy television shows.

The study of humor and laughter, and its psychological and physiological effects on the human body is called gelotology.

From Wikipedia under the GNU Free Documentation License
Thu Jun 11 05:04:31 2009

Where exactly do they come up with the statistic "Laughter adds 8 Years onto your life"?
Q. What are the conditions? How much laughter? Hours a day? Minutes? I think it's a really flawed stat because if you go around laughing all day, sooner or later someone's going to kill you, and that would negate any positive years added on.
Asked by Deuce Bostitute: Male Prostitute - Wed Jul 9 17:58:43 2008 - - 6 Answers - 0 Comments

A. it could mean that too much laughter can make you look 8 years older. you use and strain your facial muscles much faster when you laugh.
Answered by unknown - Wed Jul 9 18:25:10 2008

Do you know of any quotations about laughter?
Q. I actually do know quite a few, but for this specific project for English, we need to choose a quote by Ralph Waldo Emerson or Henry David Thoreau... If you know of any quotes these two men have said about LaUgHtEr, I would appreciate you sending the info my way! Thanks everyone!
Asked by Emma Casey - Sun Jan 21 17:16:19 2007 - - 5 Answers - 1 Comments

A. Every generation laughs at the old fashions, but follows religiously the new. Henry David Thoreau, "Walden", 1854 Not exactly laughter, but: The essence of all jokes, of all comedy, seems to be an honest or well intended halfness; a non performance of that which is pretended to be performed, at the same time that one is giving loud pledges of performance. The balking of the intellect, is comedy and it announces itself in the pleasant spasms we call laughter. Ralph Waldo Emerson
Answered by istitch2 - Sun Jan 21 17:49:36 2007

What did our president mean by "gallows humor" when describing his laughter?
Q. I've never heard of this type of humor before. I'd hate to think he is laughing about the dire state of the economy. washington congressional Republicans on Sunday predicted a doomsday scenario of crushing debt and eventual federal bankruptcy if President Barack Obama's massive spending blueprint wins passage. But a White House adviser dismissed the negative assessments, saying she is "incredibly confident" that the president's policies will "do the job" for the economy. In a TV interview, Obama himself laughed when discussing the dire state of parts of the economy and ascribed his laughter to "gallows humor."
Asked by Virginia B (John 16:33) - Sun Mar 22 20:41:44 2009 - - 16 Answers - 0 Comments

A. He may not be aware of how prophetic his statement may be. General Ashkenazi the head of the IDF (Israel Defence Force) was in Washington recently. He received a very cold reception, and cut his visit short. He was bringing intelligence about the Iran nuclear advancements. The administration gave him the cold shoulder. They intimated they would only talk about Palestinians. Hillary Clinton was also in the Middle east recently and said she was passionate about the two state solution, (dividing Israel and Jerusalem) The Abrahamic covenant says that those who bless Israel will be blessed; and those who curse Israel will be cursed. This is a reciprocal curse... as you deal with Israel, so will you be dealt with. Evidence of this can be… [cont.]
Answered by wynner01 - Sun Mar 22 23:07:38 2009

From Yahoo Answer Search: "laughter"
Thu May 28 06:38:04 2009

See also:

Custom search only laughter sites:

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Wed Jun 24 23:08:51 2009
'Sylvia' takes laughter off leash - News & Observer
newsobserver.com
'Sylvia' takes laughter off leash

News & Observer, NC

BY ROY C. DICKS - Correspondent RALEIGH -- Can "man's best friend" become too much of a good thing? That's the premise of AR Gurney's quirky comedy "Sylvia," opening this year's Hot Summer Nights at the Kennedy series. Sylvia is a dog that Greg, ...
MTV Movie Awards Host Andy Samberg Leaves Sway Crying With Laughter - MTV.com
newsroom.mtv.com
MTV Movie Awards Host Andy Samberg Leaves Sway Crying With Laughter

MTV.com

... Lindsay Lohan and Jimmy Fallon when they hosted the Movie Awards in past years, and now it's his time to shine. It's one of the hardest gigs in television, but I think he will manage fine. Throughout the entire interview, I held back tears of laughter .
Make Me Laugh: Trio fills Stadium club with laughter -6/10/2009, 3 ... - Hays Daily News
hdnews.net
Make Me Laugh: Trio fills Stadium club with laughter -6/10/2009, 3 ...

Hays Daily News, KS

The trio of Scot Shields, Sean Cirone and Nathan Scott Ford brought their "Just Another Hangover Tour" to the May 20 Comedy Night, filling the Stadium Club with roaring laughter . I spoke with this entertaining threesome after the show. ...

From Google News Search: "laughter"
Sat Jun 20 00:22:40 2009

laughter of yesterdays children a jpg
museum.appstate.edu
laughter of yesterdays children a jpg
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[source page]

Etching 1972 Late in the afternoon they would sit out back of the old house waiting patiently for the coming of evening their dreams echoing the laughter of yesterday s children Click on the link

laughter00 JPG
hijinks.com
laughter00 JPG
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[source page]

Laughter on the 23rd Floor 9

international laughter conference jpg
laughteryoga.org
international laughter conference jpg
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[source page]

Laughter Yoga Conferences

From Yahoo Image Search: "laughter"
Fri Jun 19 23:40:52 2009

Plan a Weekend Filled With Laughter | GlamBuzz
blogs.glam.com
Plan a Weekend Filled With Laughter | GlamBuzz

Aanchal

Wed, 17 Jun 2009 14:37:00 GM

An Inside Peek into the World of Music, Movies, and TV.

First Time Dirtbiker Faceplants into Fence | Hahakiri - Everybody ...
hahakiri.com
First Time Dirtbiker Faceplants into Fence | Hahakiri - Everybody ...

admin

Fri, 19 Jun 2009 08:51:15 GM

Hahakiri - Everybody Would Kill for . Laughter. . Here you can find the funniest, and craziest pictures and videos. Are you ready for Hahakiri?

Lykke Li "After Laughter (Comes Tears)" - hhv.de | selected store
selectedstore.hhv.de
Lykke Li "After Laughter (Comes Tears)" - hhv.de | selected store

(Florian)

ue, 16 Jun 2009 11:44:40 GM

Lykke Li "After . Laughter. (Comes Tears)" 16 June 2009. Blasphemie oder gegluecktes Cover? Ihr entscheidet. Die 7" waere da. Posted by: Florian | Tags: covers, lykke li, samples, videos, wendy rene, wu-tang · Kommentare (1). Comments ...

From Google Blog Search: "laughter"
Sat Jun 20 06:35:59 2009

Quotes on laughter, which can be an audible expression of merriment and amusement or an inward feeling of joy and pleasure.

Contents

Sourced

Mirth is God's medicine. Everybody ought to bathe in it. ~ Henry Ward Beecher
  • You grow up the first day you have your first good laugh — at yourself.
    • Ethel Barrymore, as quoted in 1,600 Quotes & Pieces of Wisdom That Just Might Help You Out When You're Stuck in a Moment (and Can't Get Out of It!) (2003) by Gary P. Guthrie
  • Mirth is God's medicine. Everybody ought to bathe in it.
  • Whoever undertakes to set himself up as a judge of Truth and Knowledge is shipwrecked by the laughter of the gods.
    • Edmund Burke in the Preface to Brissot's Address to his Constituents (1794)
  • And if I laugh at any mortal thing, 'Tis that I may not weep.
  • No man who has once heartily and wholly laughed can be altogether irreclaimably bad.