“Laughter may not be nearly as expressive as language, but it has two properties that make it ideal for navigating sensitive topics. First, it’s relatively honest. With words, it’s too easy to pay lip service to rules we don’t really… — Kevin Simler Copy Share Image
“A common problem plagues people who try to design institutions without accounting for hidden motives. First they identify the key goals that the institution “should” achieve. Then they search for a design that best achieves these goals, given all the… — Kevin Simler Copy Share Image
“But notice all the conspicuous effort in this story. If Charles’s physicians had simply prescribed soup and bed rest, everyone might have questioned whether… — Kevin Simler Copy Share Image
“In fact, one of the best predictors of dominance is the ratio of “eye contact while speaking” to “eye contact while listening.” Psychologists call… — Kevin Simler Copy Share Image
“Instead, by creating associations that exist out in the broader culture—not just in our own heads, but in the heads of third parties—ads turn… — Kevin Simler Copy Share Image
“Thus we use laughter to gauge and calibrate social boundaries—both behavioral boundaries (norms) and group membership boundaries (who deserves how much of our empathy).… — Kevin Simler Copy Share Image
“In the broadest sense, there are at least two ways to use the danger of norms for comedic effect. The first is to feint… — Kevin Simler Copy Share Image
“When we donate to a good cause, it “says” to our associates, “Look, I’m willing to spend my resources for the benefit of others.… — Kevin Simler Copy Share Image
“In light of all this, we’re now equipped to think about the relationship between laughter and humor. In any given comedic situation, humor precedes… — Kevin Simler Copy Share Image
“Note, however, that a community’s supply of social rewards is limited, so we’re often competing to show more loyalty than others—to engage in a… — Kevin Simler Copy Share Image
“do well to turn Matthew 7:1 on its head: “Judge freely, and accept that you too will be judged.” — Kevin Simler Copy Share Image
“So it’s a mixed bag. Schools help prepare us for the modern workplace and perhaps for society at large. But in order to do… — Kevin Simler Copy Share Image
“It is a wonderful quirk of our species that the incentives of social life don’t reward strictly ruthless behavior. Leaders who are too domineering… — Kevin Simler Copy Share Image
“80 percent of people chose to award a scholarship to a member of their favored political party, even when another applicant had better grades.… — Kevin Simler Copy Share Image
