Half a croissant, on a plate, with a sign in front of it saying '50c'
h a l f b a k e r y
"My only concern is that it wouldn't work, which I see as a problem."

idea: add, search, annotate, link, view, overview, recent, by name, random

meta: news, help, about, links, report a problem

account: browse anonymously, or get an account and write.

user:
pass:
register,


                                       

Here's laughing at you, kid.

"I don't get it."
  (+12)(+12)
(+12)
  [vote for,
against]

IQ tests, as they stand, are pretty boring.

"Which one of these words don't belong?"
"2,5,9,14,20,27,35,__,__,65"
"Apple : Orange :: Fishbone: ________"
"...So, if Stephen is 12, how old is Mary?"

Rather than using these tired old question formats, I propose that a joke standard be adopted. Humor is just as appropriate a measure of intelligence as these stuffy old questions are, and a properly balanced selection of jokes would easily provide for a new standard of intelligence testing.

Evaluators would be on hand to assess the degree of laughter from a scale of 0-5.

0 - Your mother-in-law is visiting for two weeks.
1 - The guy who cut you in line just tripped.
2 - Your friend just sneezed all over himself.
3 - Your boss farts as he leaves the meeting.
4 - Laughed so hard, blew milk out of nose.
5 - Laughed so hard, blew sandwich out of nose.

The response would then be analyzed based on the appropriate standard of response. A "0", appropriate for "redneck" jokes, would be a poor response to the one about the priest and rabbi walking into a bar. Points are deducted for each instance of "I don't get it," except in the event of a "Far Side" comic, in which case that may be the appropriate response.

Obviously, PB & J sandwiches, with their crusts cut off, would have to be supplied to all participants, as well as milk through a bendy straw.

Overpanic, Nov 24 2003

[link]






       I don't get it.
DrCurry, Nov 24 2003
  

       Chicken is to road as:
A: mime is to tree
B: horse is to bar
C: nun is to rabbi
D: Overpanic is to croissant.
RayfordSteele, Nov 24 2003
  

       BLURHRHRGGGH! [blows sandwich out nose]
phundug, Nov 24 2003
  

       Jokes are to testing IQ as:
A: Michael Jackson is to Childcare
B: Cooking is to Driving
C: Computator is to Croisants
D: Panic PIN is to ATM
  

       Your IQ rating depends on it! [+]
Turn upside-down to read answer
Letsbuildafort, Nov 24 2003
  

       So is humor a sign of high or low intelligence?
my-nep, Nov 24 2003
  

       //Turn upside-down to read answer//   

       I fell off my chair. Can I have a new one?
Detly, Nov 24 2003
  

       umop apisdn   

       Obligatory Turn upside down to read answer Post
thumbwax, Nov 25 2003
  

       I think you are on to something with this one... i have always thought IQ tests were lame and that a sense of humor is a sign of intelegence (or maybe just a sign you are alive, not sure on that one)
Mr Machine, May 21 2004
  

       You do realize you spelt intelligence wrong....correct?
xxOlliexx, May 21 2004
  

       That's what scout's post was referring to.   

       Do I have to spell it out for ya?
WordUp, Aug 04 2004
  

       smelt sandwich with nose and didn't eat it
tasman, Aug 04 2004
  

       Monty Python is depressing. Idiots!
sninctown, Apr 21 2005
  

       A+ and a half.
disbomber, Apr 21 2005
  

       Monty Python is hilarious. But what about all those people who just laugh to jokes because they think they should?
hidden truths, Apr 21 2005
  

       The best theory about laughter that I know of is the one in Desmond Morris' 'The Naked Ape'; it says that, biologically speaking, laughter is basically a fear response followed immediately by relief.   

       So we laugh at things when, just for a moment, they look scary (because, e.g., unfamiliar or painful), but then turn out not to be (because, e.g., happening - to - someone - else - that - we - don't - care - about, God forbid).   

       So, if you measure a person's laughter, what you're measuring is a combination of what that person is afraid of (or what they think is strange), and what they care about.   

       On this theory, subtle verbal humour depends on our caring enough about verbal nuances to be momentarily disturbed when they are used in an unfamiliar way. If we care about this stuff, does it mean we are intelligent, or just that we should get out more?
pertinax, May 24 2006
  

       [+] Brilliant.
kuupuuluu, May 24 2006
  

       Laughter is culture dependent. In Japan they had no laughter prior to the 1970s, and had to "learn it" in their culture. The sounds of laughter together with showing of teeth was used to show regret.   

       In the Prussian and German culture until the 12th century, laughter was thought of as improper, and humor was saved for cynicism and snide remarks.   

       The Yiddish culture was full of "underdog" jokes, where laughter was usually mixed with crying.   

       There are theories that originally laughter: showing teeth, short barking sounds, and hissing, have to do with feeding together on a single hunted animal, where each of the individuals was warning the others off, similar to a wolf pack, but evolved into a ritual of shared meals.
pashute, Dec 08 2012
  

       The old adage "Laughter is the best medicine" indicates that humour is a form of sickness.
FlyingToaster, Dec 08 2012
  

       [+] Probably the more relevant answers could be the laughs to the sentences that don't are a joke at all.
piluso, Dec 08 2012
  
      
[annotate]
  


 

back: main index

business  computer  culture  fashion  food  halfbakery  home  other  product  public  science  sport  vehicle