Today’s Wonder of the Day was inspired by Lillian. Lillian Wonders, “What gives us the giggles?” Thanks for WONDERing with us, Lillian!
Do you like to laugh? What gets you giggling? A good joke? A funny movie? How about situational humor? Wonderopolis is a great place to find a few laughs. Have you learned about your funny bone? How about memes? We hope you laugh a little bit every day. After all, it’s good for you!
Sometimes, people laugh without knowing why. And once they get started, they can’t stop! In fact, they might even spread their laughter to those around them. Soon enough, a whole group of people could be experiencing uncontrollable, contagious laughter.
Have you ever experienced anything like that? If you come upon a group of people laughing, it’s only natural to start laughing, too. It’s almost like you can’t help it…even if you have no clue what’s so funny! That’s the contagious nature of laughter.
Fits of uncontrollable giggling naturally seem to happen when a group of people witnesses or experiences something funny. Laughing with others is fun and makes you feel good. Many people would agree that laughter really is the best medicine.
Sometimes, though, uncontrollable giggling fits can be a sign of a medical issue. That’s especially true if there’s nothing obviously funny going on. For example, uncontrollable giggling fits can be a symptom of chronic anxiety or a brain disorder. These need the attention of a medical professional.
If you see someone laughing and their laughter makes you start laughing, don’t worry! That’s perfectly natural. It happens to all of us from time to time. No one knows for sure what makes laughter contagious. However, it might have something to do with our desire to be accepted as part of a group.
Scientists believe that laughing is mostly unconscious. In other words, you don’t choose to laugh in the same way you choose to say something. Instead, your brain has you laughing at something you see as funny before you even think about it. Have you ever laughed when someone fell down? That’s because your brain made you laugh before you realized it was rude to do so!
Whatever gives you the giggles, we hope you get plenty of it! Laughter is a great way to spread a good mood around. The next time you see another person laughing, join in. You might find that you feel much happier after a laugh.
Standards: CCRA.L.3, CCRA.L.6, CCRA.R.1, CCRA.R.2, CCRA.R.4, CCRA.R.10, CCRA.W.3, CCRA.W.4, CCRA.L.1, CCRA.L.2, CCRA.SL.1