Why do we laugh when people fall over,or down stairs?
477363
Because no matter how well dressed we are or how high powered our job is - we all fall down the stairs like the wonderful fools that we are! \n\nI think its not laughing at thier pain, but at thier exposure as a vulnerable human being.
334673
i think it has something to do with a "flight or fight" syndrome. like when you get startled. except when you are nervous, you know there is no need to run and you really have no need to fight, so therefore, you laugh. some people stutter or get flustered, you laugh. nothing wrong with it, just maybe say excuse me, im a little nervous. if you are feeling pressure, explain that the person is making you uncomfortable and could they please back off.
27407
This was an interesting question for me.  I did a bit of looking and this is what I came up with. Hope it answers your question.\n\nFrom MSNBC "Why do we laugh?" http://msnbc.msn.com/id/3077386/\nA big mystery: Why do we laugh?\nContrary to folk wisdom, most laughter is not about humor\nBy Robert Provine, Ph.D. (Special to MSNBC.com)\n"Very little is known about the specific brain mechanisms responsible for laughter. But we do know that laughter is triggered by many sensations and thoughts, and that it activates many parts of the body."\n\nPleasure and Pain\n"How much affect do other people have on what we find funny? That's what researchers at Melbourne's Latrobe University have been investigating"\nhttp://abcasiapacific.com/nexus/stories/s883200.htm\n\nHere's a slightly different angle,\nTHE PHYSIOLOGICAL BENEFITS OF LAUGHTER\nhttp://sulcus.berkeley.edu/mcb/165_001/papers/manuscripts/_116.html\n\nThis one is an _old_ article, but I thought it was interesting,\nHerbert Spencer:   THE PHYSIOLOGY OF LAUGHTER [First published in Macmillan's Magazine, March, 1860]\nhttp://www.mt.tama.hosei.ac.jp/~hhirano/academia/laughter.htm\n\nCase Western Reserve University in Cleveland, OH even has a course on it!\nUSSO 214 - Laughter \nTom Bishop, Department of English\n\nWe love to laugh. Laughter can be exhilarating, cathartic, embarrassing, debilitating, punitive, liberating, grotesque, or helpless. This course is designed to explore the universal (we believe) human phenomenon of laughter from a number of different perspectives, not all of them areas of expertise of the instructor. We will be interested in such questions as: How do we laugh? Why do we laugh? What makes us laugh? What physiological, psychological, social, and political work does or might laughter do? Do other animals laugh? Do the gods laugh? How do artists and performers make us laugh? Are there kinds of laughter? Has laughter changed across time? Across space? Is laughter gendered? Is there a specifically Roman, Japanese, or Southern laughter? Is there anything that can’t or mustn’t be funny? What is the opposite of laughter? The course will involve a series of readings and discussions—but also a series of jokes, stories, excursions, interviews, and performances. We will want not only to analyze laughter, but also to do it—and to induce it.  http://www.case.edu/sages/sem_0304.htm
135105
This has been asked here before:\n\nMost of us have a ticklish spot somewhere on our bodies, and it is usually pretty easy to find. For some it's just above the knee, for others it's the back of the neck, and some of us go into fits of laughter if someone grabs our sides. Laughing when another person tickles you is a natural reaction. Scientists have discovered that the feeling experienced when we are tickled causes us to panic and is a natural defense to little creepy crawlers like spiders and bugs. Slight tickles from insects can send a chill through your body letting you know something is crawling on you. \nThat same ticklish feeling sends us into a state of panic and elicits a response of uncontrollable laughter if a person tickles us. It's the moment that you least expect to be tickled and are that causes you to feel extremely uneasy and panicked, which leads to the most intense ticklish feeling. Even if you do know that you are about to be tickled, the fear and unease of someone touching and possibly hurting you causes you to laugh. Some people are so ticklish that they begin laughing even before they are touched. \n\nSo, if someone else's touch can tickle us, why can't we tickle ourselves? Much of the explanation for this question is still unknown, but research has shown that the brain is trained to know what to feel when a person moves or performs any function. We aren't aware of a lot of the sensations generated by our movements. For example, you probably don't pay much attention to your vocal cords when you speak. For the same reason, we can't tickle ourselves. If we grab our sides in an attempt to tickle ourselves, our brain anticipates this contact from the hands and prepares itself for it. By taking away the feeling of unease and panic, the body no longer responds the same as it would if someone else were to tickle us. \n\nBrain scientists at the University College London have pinpointed the cerebellum as the part of the brain that prevents us from self-tickling. The cerebellum is the region located at the base of the brain that monitors our movements. It can distinguish expected sensations from unexpected sensations. An expected sensation would be the amount of pressure your fingers apply to your keyboard while typing. An unexpected sensation would be someone sneaking up behind you and tapping you on the shoulder. While the brain discards the sensation of typing, it pays a lot of attention to someone tapping on your shoulder. The difference in reactions from expected to unexpected is a built-in response that probably developed in early human history to detect predators. \n\nAlthough we are not able to tickle ourselves unassisted, there is a way to trick the brain by using a robot tickler. That's right. With all of the know-how of science and technology, a robot has been designed to allow people to tickle themselves. The same British scientists mentioned above have designed a machine that enables you to tickle yourself by remote control. To use the machine, a person lies on their back with their eyes shut. The robot is located near the person with a piece of soft foam attached to a plastic rod that is controlled by a remote control joystick. When the person activates the rod, the robot will react after a short delay. Even with delays as short as a fifth of a second from the time the person activates the rod until the robot tickled the person's hand, subjects have described the sensation as the same as another person tickling them. So, in a sense, you could tickle yourself with a robotic assistant.
511032
It depends.  If they look really ridiculous when they fall and its obvious they didn't hurt themselves, I laugh my a** off!   But if it looked like it hurt then my nuturing side takes over and I check to make sure they're ok....THEN I laugh my a** off!
940684
rolling on the floor laughing out loud
449482
its one of the most complex actions the body can perform. Its the relative contraction and expansion of about 50 facial and neck muscles that bring about a laugh. A smile takes just the half
179390
Because humans are weird and have a mean streak. But truth is, no one can really help laughing, sometimes the way a person goes down is just too funny. We are not laughing at the injury (if there is one) just the way it happened!
714600
*Laughing* \n\nYou need to get your Meds checked because your not well...
619987
Its Funny till someone gets hurt...then its HILARIOUS!!!!!
335473
My wife does that all the time but I don't.  I usually laugh at her.  Too bad there aren't any serious answers yet, I'd like to know why also.  I had never seen anyone do it until my wife.
1041256
Not everyone knows that they have the power within themselves to positivly affect their outlook on life. along with laughter hugs also promote health! I love your question have a great day! next time somone says something negative around you laugh and give them a hug!
419830
B/c people think that it is funny to watch things that degrade other people or that it's funny to laugh at another person's expense.  Sure, these people are willing to make an ass out of themself, but to me, the shit is not funny!!
424375
a very natural way to cover up their true emotions. sometimes some people get away with it remarkably. some people are just toooo nervous that even their giggle sounds ghastly..\nit is jus a spontaneous reaction to a situation they cant handle..
732991
In 80 out of 100 situations a man laughs when he sees the other person in trouble.It is a very good habit it keeps a person fit mentally as well as physically.Therefore try to laugh as many times as you can.\nWith the passage of time you yourself will feel that your thinking and attitude towards life and other things and people has changed a lot and has become positive.
634442
it is because we have no way to control the sounds, their number or intensity.\n\n\nthere is nothing funnier than sitting in a stall next to someone with Die-Rear !! First comes all that explosive air and then........need I say more????\n\n\nIt is just NASTY!!!!!! and we do not want to be the one laughed at!
732507
Rolling On Floor Laughing Out Loud