While exploring the neuroscience of speech and vocal behavior, Sophie Scott stumbled upon a surprising second vocation: making audiences laugh as a stand-up comic.
Why you should listen
As deputy director of the University College London’s Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Sophie Scott seeks out the neurological basis of communication, whether it’s speech or vocalized emotion.
As a pioneering researcher in the science of laughter, she’s made some unexpected discoveries -- including that rats are ticklish, and that the one tactic that’s almost guaranteed to get someone to laugh is to show them someone else laughing. But as an occasional stand-up comedian with UCL’s Bright Club, she shows that she’s no slouch at getting laughs herself.
What others say
“For Scott, laughter is more than displaying amusement -- it's a primal way of showing people that we like them and want them to like us.”
Sophie Scott’s TED Talks
More news and ideas from Sophie Scott
In Brief
Reggie Watts’ virtual reality dance party and more TED news
January 31, 2019
The TED community is busy with new projects and news — below, some highlights. A virtual reality dance party at Sundance. Musician and comedian Reggie Watts and artist Kiira Benzing debuted their new project “Runnin’” at the Sundance Film Festival’s New Frontier exhibit. “Runnin’” is an “immersive, interactive music video” backed with a hypnotic techno […]
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Endgame: A recap of the emotional final session of TED2015
March 20, 2015
It is hard to believe that this is final session of TED2015. Luckily Session 12, “Endgame,” is our longest ever — with two full hours of talks that took us on a journey through the human experience, from anger to laughter and back again. Read a recap of these inspiring talks. An ode to anger. […]
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How scientists make people laugh to study humor
March 20, 2015
British cognitive neuroscientist Sophie Scott studies vocal communication. She explains why looking into giggles and mirth is important ... and shares ways she makes subjects laugh in the lab.
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