A neuroscientist at Stanford recently used an fMRI machine to peer into people’s brains while they watch cartoons, and found that men and women were responding differently.

Listen to “Choice,” the first episode in Radiolab’s fifth season, this Friday (Nov 14) at 3pm on 93.9 FM WNYC. Afterwards, go to themorningnews.org to join co-host Jad Abumrad and your fellow Radiolab listeners for a live online chat from 4-5pm.

Mrs. Murphy’s Manners for Women, a British how-to from 1897, has very particular ideas about the role of women’s laughter.

Attention New York metropolitan area Radiolabbers: Our Robert Krulwich will be on stage this Sunday at the 92nd Street Y with animal communications scientist Irene Pepperberg to talk about her late, lamented but wonderously remarkable African Grey parrot Alex.

Much has been written about the alleged health benefits of laughter, but a new report takes it up a notch by claiming that the mere anticipation of laughter dramatically reduces stress hormones—which tempts me to lie and say that this article is really funny:

As you may already know, we are hard at work finishing up Season 5. But we can't finish it ourselves. After some intense jam sessions over the long weekend, Jad and Robert's death-metal side project has rendered them both mute! Don't worry they'll recover.

Aristotle thought babies became human beings only once they laughed for the first time. He also decided that this should happen around their 40th day. Conventional wisdom now puts it at about the 90th day—but we’re probably not as funny as the ancient Greeks.

The use of fetal cells in science has become quite controversial. There was an interesting moment in an interview between Radio Lab co-host, Jad Abumrad. and scientist Dr. Leonard Hayflick on this topic when we were making the show Mortality. Dr. Hayflick grew millions of cells from one aborted fetus and pioneered the use of fetal cells for research and the creation of vaccines.

Last summer we traveled to Tanzania in our Laughter show to investigate a 1962 epidemic of contagious laughter. Well, it turns out these sorts of episodes still happen, and not just with laughter.

We're looking into a possible story on thymic irradiation. What's that you ask? It's when your thymus is treated with x-ray therapy - in most cases to reduce its size. But, while it was a popular procedure for kids with respiratory ailments in the twenties, the thirties and even up through the fifties it doesn't happen so much anymore. So now we're hoping you can help.

“Laughter,” wrote Thomas Hobbes, “is nothing else but sudden glory arising from some sudden conception of some eminency in ourselves, by comparison with the infirmity of others, or with our own formerly.”

Here at Radiolab we’ve been known to tinker with sound.... cutting music, ambi, and big ideas all together to get the point across in the most fun, interesting and understandable way. It’s not your typical public radio interview. Recently, we decided to check in with some of the guests on past episodes to see what they thought. Were they over-edited? Mis-represented? Did they love the show? Hate it?

Here at Radiolab we’ve been known to tinker with sound.... cutting music, ambi, and big ideas all together to get the point across in the most fun, interesting and understandable way. It’s not your typical public radio interview. Recently, we decided to check in with some of the guests on past episodes to see what they thought. Were they over-edited? Mis-represented? Did they love the show? Hate it?

We want your two cents. Give us your best argument for or against calling Radiolab a science show. Is it a show about science? Is it scientific in its approach? How would you describe it to a friend who's never heard an episode? Are there limitations to classifying it as a science show?

Yet another listener has sent in a youtube that makes us stop what we're doing and gather around ye olde computer screen to gaze upon its offerings. Darn you, Ross Bennett, for indulging our desire to procrastinate! You want to us to finish Season 5, don't you? Alas. This one's too good not to pass along.

Hey folks, we're considering putting out a Best of Radiolab CD in the fall and we're looking for a few suggestions for what to include. Imagine if you could only play one story -- not a whole show, but something a little smaller -- which one would it be?

Here at Radiolab we’ve been known to tinker with sound... cutting music, ambi, and big ideas all together to get the point across in the most fun, interesting and understandable way. It’s not your typical public radio interview. Recently, we decided to check in with some of the guests on past episodes to see what they thought. Were they over-edited? Mis-represented? Did they love the show? Hate it?

The excellent Brooklyn-based quarterly Cabinet dedicated its Spring ‘05 issue to laughter. You’re just going to have to buy a copy, because only a very small portion is available online…including this fine essay by Chris Turner on the fluid boundary between laughing and crying:

Hydrogen sulfide stinks, but you knew that already, didn't you. Hydrogen sulfide is flammable, but you probably knew that too (and I won't ask how). But did you know hydrogen sulfide lowers blood pressure? and might protect the body from injury?