The evolution of music and humour...

Hmmm, the evolution of humour. This came up a while ago but I keep thinking about it. Why did we develop humour – how does it better equip us for survival? Much of our evolution (apologies to the ID crowd – just tune out if the weight of evidence is too great to bear) is in theory revealed during our early childhood, so that gives us a clue where to look.

Humour could (he postulates!) derive from play. Play is a way to test ideas, to push boundaries and to learn or develop skills. It’s also useful as a socialising, bonding tool. With our social complexity and a big brain it probably doesn’t take much effort to use what we and many other animals have (the play impulse) and turn it into more abstract jokes, especially later in life when the original reason for being is no longer so relevant. So we have a tool for learning and socialising – that conceivably will help us survive in the evolutionary jungle. Read more...