笑声的科学 | 萨莎·温克勒

多年来，我一直像坏掉的唱片一样重复着同样的说法。

For years, I've sounded like a broken record.

我不想要孩子。

I do not want kids.

我永远都不想生孩子。

I do not ever want to have kids.

我不想要孩子。

I don't want to have a kid.

不想生孩子。

Don't want to have a kid.

不想生孩子。

Don't want to have a kid.

我现在四十多岁了。

I'm in my forties now.

门几乎已经关上了。

The door is almost closed.

突然间，我不那么确定了。

And suddenly, I'm not so sure.

这个故事一直都说不。

The story has always been no.

我只是在想，这到底在多大程度上只是一个故事。

I'm just wondering to what degree it's just a story.

很可能只是一个故事。

Could definitely just a story.

来自CBC的《个人故事》，这里是《创世神话》，现在可在您收听播客的任何平台收听。

From CBC's Personally, this is Creation Myth, available now wherever you get your podcasts.

这里是TED健康频道，我是肖莎娜·昂格尔莱特医生。

This is TED Health, and I'm doctor Shoshana Ungerleiter.

我丈夫有一种非凡的本事，能让我笑到肋骨疼、喘不过气。

My husband has this remarkable knack for making me laugh until my sides ache and I'm gasping for breath.

这些是我和他在一起时最珍贵的一些回忆。

Those are some of my most favorite memories of us together.

因此，我特别被萨莎·温克勒2023年在TED Ed上的课程吸引，该课程深入探讨了笑声背后的科学。

And that's why I was particularly drawn to Sasha Winkler's twenty twenty three TED Ed lesson, which delves into the science behind laughter.

她解释了这种出人意料复杂的行為如何揭示了人性以及我们与其他物种的进化联系。

She explains what this surprisingly complex behavior suggests about human nature and our evolutionary connections with other species.

除了简单的机制，萨莎还探讨了笑声在社交联结、沟通甚至健康方面的重要性。

Moving beyond simple mechanics, Sasha also explores laughter's significance in social bonding, communication, and even health.

毕竟，笑声是一种我们所有人都会说的通用语言。

After all, laughter is a universal language that we all speak.

多年来，我一直像坏掉的唱片一样重复着同一句话。

For years, I've sounded like a broken record.

我不想要孩子。

I do not want kids.

我永远都不想有孩子。

I do not ever wanna have kids.

我不想生孩子。

I don't wanna have a kid.

不想生孩子。

Don't wanna have a kid.

不想生孩子。

Don't wanna have a kid.

我现在四十多岁了。

I'm in my forties now.

这扇门几乎已经关上了。

The door is almost closed.

但突然间，我不那么确定了。

And suddenly, I'm not so sure.

这个故事一直都说‘不’。

The story has always been no.

我只是在想，这到底在多大程度上只是一个故事。

I'm just wondering to what degree it's just a story.

很可能只是一个故事。

Could definitely just a story.

来自CBC的《个人化》节目，这里是《创世神话》，现已在所有播客平台上线。

From CBC's Personally, this is Creation Myth, available now wherever you get new podcasts.

当某件事很有趣时，你可能会露出牙齿、改变呼吸、身体某些部位感到无力酸痛，甚至流泪，这难道不奇怪吗？

Isn't it odd that when something's funny, you might show your teeth, change your breathing, become weak and achy in some places, and maybe even cry?

换句话说，我们为什么会做出这种奇怪的行为——大笑？

In other words, why do we do this bizarre thing that is laughter?

当你笑的时候，腹部肌肉会迅速收缩。

When you laugh, your abdominal muscles contract rapidly.

这会改变你的呼吸模式，增加胸腔内的压力，将空气推出，可能以打喷嚏声、喘息声或发声的形式 audible 地释放出来。

This alters your breathing patterns, increasing the pressure in your chest cavity and pushing air out, which might audibly emerge as a snort, wheeze, or vocalization.

因为你在笑时比平时说话时更用力地使用腹部肌肉，它们可能会开始疼痛。

Because you're exerting your abdominal muscles much more than you usually would while talking, they may start to hurt.

笑还会抑制你的反射和肌肉控制，导致腿部无力等感觉。

Laughter also inhibits your reflexes and muscle control, causing sensations like leg weakness.

那么，这种有趣的现象究竟从何而来？

So where does this funny phenomenon come from?

由于笑声没有考古记录，我们无法确切说明它是如何以及为何演化的，但科学家们提出了一些理论。

Because there's no archaeological record of laughter, it's impossible to say exactly how and why it evolved, but scientists have some theories.

重要的是，人类并不是唯一今天会做出类似笑声行为的动物。

Importantly, humans are not the only animals today that do something like laughter.

在二十世纪九十年代末，研究人员使用超声波记录仪发现，老鼠在被挠痒时几乎是在咯咯笑。

Using ultrasonic recorders, researchers in the late nineties realized that rats were basically giggling while being tickled.

自那以后，科学家们收集了至少65个物种的证据，这些物种大多是哺乳动物，也有一些鸟类，它们在社交玩耍时会发出声音。

Scientists have since compiled evidence of at least 65 species mostly mammals but also some birds that vocalize during social play.

其中一些，毫不意外，是我们最亲近的近亲。

Some, unsurprisingly, are our closest relatives.

通过记录和分析灵长类动物在玩耍和被挠痒时发出的声音，研究人员越来越确信，所有大猿的共同祖先也会做出类似笑声的行为。

By recording and analyzing the sound primates make while playing and being tickled, researchers grew more convinced that the ancient ancestor of all great apes did something like laughter.

由于其他猿类在打闹玩耍时也会发出类似笑声的声音，研究人员认为笑声最初可能是为了明确传达友好、非攻击性的意图而演化出来的。

And because other apes make laughter like sounds during rough and tumble play, they think laughter may have originally developed to clearly signal friendly, nonaggressive intent.

但当然，人类不仅在摔跤时会笑，还会在感到有趣、惊讶、困惑或紧张时发笑。

But of course, humans don't just laugh when we're wrestling, but also when we're amused and even surprised, confused, or nervous.

一些科学家认为，在人类与其他大猿分化并发展出大型社交群体和更复杂语言能力后，笑声承担了更广泛的功能。

Some scientists think laughter took on expanded functions after humans split from other great apes and developed large social groups and more complex language abilities.

他们假设，笑声逐渐演变成一种不仅在玩耍时使用，还能在言语中传达细微含义和多种情境以表达情绪的工具。

They hypothesized that laughter gradually became something we could use not just during play, but within speech to convey subtle meanings and a range of contexts to show our emotions.

这是

This is

这被认为是笑声具有传染性的一个原因。

thought to be one of the reasons that laughter is contagious.

它就像一种邀请，让你分享他人的情绪状态。

It's like an invitation to share in someone's emotional state.

仅仅听到笑声片段，就能激活大脑中的关键区域，促使你微笑或发笑。

Just hearing clips of laughter can activate key regions in your brain, triggering you to smile or laugh yourself.

在一项研究中，当参与者观看搞笑视频时，如果有他人在场，他们会笑得更久、更频繁，尽管他们报告的有趣程度相同。

And when participants in one study watched a funny video, they laughed significantly longer and more often when another person was present, even though they reported feeling the same level of amusement.

人类的笑声通常也比大多数动物的玩耍叫声更响亮。

Human laughter is also generally louder than the play vocalizations of most animals.

一些科学家推测，这是因为我们的笑声不仅作为个体之间的信号，更是向周围所有人发出的广播。

Some scientists speculate that this is because our laughter functions not only as a signal between individuals, but a broadcast to everyone around.

研究发现，世界各地的观察者，甚至仅五个月大的婴儿，仅凭短暂的笑声片段就能可靠地区分亲密朋友和熟人。

Studies found that observers across the world and as young as five months old could reliably tell the difference between close friends and acquaintances just from brief clips of them laughing.

同样，我们仅凭声音就能判断笑声是真实的还是假装的。

Similarly, we can tell whether a laugh is real or fake based just on the sound.

虚假或有意识的笑声由大脑中完全不同的网络产生，依赖于类似语言的通路。

Fake or volitional laughter is produced in entirely different networks in the brain, relying on speech like pathways.

而自发的笑声则源于更古老的神经网络，这些网络也是其他动物用于发声的。

Meanwhile, spontaneous laughter arises from older networks that other animals also use for their vocalizations.

而且，笑声不仅在社交上重要。

And laughter's not just socially important.

它也被认为对我们有益。

It's also thought to be good for us.

当我们笑的时候，大脑会释放令人愉悦的神经递质，如内啡肽，并降低皮质醇等压力激素的水平。

When we laugh, our brains release feel good neurotransmitters like endorphins and decrease levels of stress hormones like cortisol.

一些研究甚至表明，经常笑的人更能有效应对压力，并且心血管健康状况更好。

Some research even suggests that people who laugh more can cope with stress more effectively and have better cardiovascular health.

笑是一种普遍的人类行为。

Laughter is a universal human behavior.

婴儿在会说话之前就会笑了。

Babies can laugh before they can speak.

笑是否是最好的良药，取决于你的病症。

Whether it's the best medicine depends on your ailment.

但作为一种让生活更易承受、加强人际关系并可能改善健康状况的方式，开怀大笑绝对没有错。

But as something that makes life more tolerable, strengthens bonds, and potentially improves aspects of your health, you can't go wrong with a good laugh.

除非你肋骨断了什么的。

Unless you have a broken rib or something.

那时就笑不出来了。

Then it's no laughing matter.

当然更不值得大笑。

Certainly nothing to crack up about.

这是萨莎·温克勒为TED Ed制作的内容。

That was Sasha Winkler for TED Ed.

今天的节目就到这里了。

And that's it for today's episode.

非常感谢您的收听。

Thanks so much for listening.

TED Health 是 TED 音频合集的一部分。

TED Health is a part of the TED Audio Collective.

我很想听听您对这期节目的看法。

I'd love to hear your thoughts about the episode.

请在 Instagram 上给我发消息：shoshanamd。

Send me a message on Instagram shoshanamd.

本集由我和科斯坦萨·加利亚多制作，由阿莱杭德拉·萨拉扎尔剪辑，范妮莎·加西亚·伍德沃思校对。

This episode was produced by me and Costanza Gallardo, edited by Alejandra Salazar, and fact checked by Vanessa Garcia Woodworth.

特别感谢玛丽亚·拉德格斯、法拉·德格伦格、大卫·比埃洛、达尼埃拉·瓦拉雷索和米歇尔·昆特。

Special thanks to Maria Ladges, Farrah Degrunge, David Biello, Daniela Valarezo, and Michelle Quint.

我是医生。

I'm Doctor.

我是肖莎娜·昂格尔莱特，下周再和你们聊。

Shoshana Ungerleiter, and I'll talk to you again next week.