Known as a “play signal,” mammalian laughter accompanies playful interactions to signal harmless intentions and keep the play going. And laughter is an essential feature of human social interactions. For humans, laughter has expanded from its original function as a play signal to serve a variety of social functions. I suspect people borrow and transform the play signal of laughter to influence situations that, on their face, have nothing to do with play. All laughter serves genuine social functions, helping you navigate complex social interactions.

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Persons: overexplaining, It’s, Mayur, aren’t, Adrienne Wood Organizations: CNN, University of Virginia, National Science Foundation