[英语]Unit 5.pptVIP

Unit Five Text A Why Do We Laugh? Warm-up questions Do you often laugh in everyday life? Why /Why not? Would you like to make friends with a person who often laughs? In your opinion, why do people laugh? Does laugh usually help to keep a person mentally healthy? Why do we Chinese prefer to smile instead of laughing in public? Background Information The Hydra Robert Provine Robert Provine Robert Provine, a neuroscientist at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, uses interdisciplinary methods to study the development and evolution of the nervous system and behavior, including human social behavior. Provines research is published in his book Laughter: A Scientific Investigation, and in over 50 peer-reviewed reports, magazine articles and book chapters, and he has been Principal Investigator on three NIH research grants. The Hydra The Hydra which lived in the swamps near to the ancient city of Lerna in Argolis, was a terrifying monster which like the Nemean lion was the offspring of Echidna (half maiden-half serpent), and Typhon (had 100 heads), other versions think that the Hydra was the offspring of Styx and the Titan Pallas. The Hydra had the body of a serpent and many heads (the number of heads deviates from five up to one hundred there are many versions but generally nine is accepted as standard), of which one could never be harmed by any weapon, and if any of the other heads were severed another would grow in its place (in some versions two would grow). Also the stench from the Hydra’s breath was enough to kill man or beast (in other versions it was a deadly venom). When it emerged from the swamp it would attack herds of cattle and local villagers, devouring them with its numerous heads. It totally terrorized the vicinity for many years. Why do we laugh? Laughter has surprisingly little to do with jokes and funny stories. Laughter is used as a powerful, uncensored probe into human social relationships Laughter: A Scientific Investigation Language