Read the passage carefully and then check the answers. There are 13 questions in the passage you need to complete within 20 minutes to get good points in the Reading module.
The Origins of Laughter Reading Answers
| Question Number | Answer | Question Number | Answer |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | B | 8 | D |
| 2 | C | 9 | G |
| 3 | D | 10 | H |
| 4 | A | 11 | NOT GIVEN |
| 5 | B | 12 | TRUE |
| 6 | A | 13 | NOT GIVEN |
| 7 | E |
The Origins of Laughter Passage
A. While joking and wit are uniquely human inventions, laughter certainly is not. Other creatures, including chimpanzees, gorillas and even rats, laugh. The fact that they laugh suggests that laughter has been around for a lot longer than we have.
B. There is no doubt that laughing typically involves groups of people. “Laughter evolved as a signal to others — it almost disappears when we are alone,” says Robert Provine, a neuroscientist at the University of Maryland. Provine found that most laughter comes as a polite reaction to everyday remarks such as “see you later”, rather than anything particularly funny. And the way we laugh depends on the company we’re keeping. Men tend to laugh longer and harder when they are with other men, perhaps as a way of bonding. Women tend to laugh more and at a higher pitch when men are present, possibly indicating flirtation or even submission.
C. To find the origins of laughter, Provine believes we need to look at play. He points out that the masters of laughing are children, and nowhere is their talent more obvious than in the boisterous antics, and the original context is play. Well-known primate watchers, including Dian Fossey and Jane Goodall, have long argued that chimps laugh while at play. The sound they produce is known as a pant laugh. It seems obvious when you watch their behavior — they even have the same ticklish spots as we do. But after removing the context, the parallel between human laughter and a chimp’s characteristic pant laugh is not so clear. When Provine played a tape of the pant laughs to 119 of his students, for example, only two guessed correctly what it was.
D. These findings underline how chimp and human laughter vary- When we laugh the sound is usually produced by chopping up a single exhalation into a series of shorter with one sound produced on each inward and outward breath. The question is: does this pant laughter have the same source as our own laughter? New research lends weight to the idea that it does. The findings come from Elke Zimmerman, head of the Institute for Zoology in Germany, who compared the sounds made by babies and chimpanzees in response to tickling during the first year of; their life. Using sound spectrographs to reveal the pitch and intensity of vocalizations, she discovered that chimp and human baby laughter follow broadly the same pattern. Zimmerman believes the closeness of baby laughter to chimp laughter supports the idea that laughter was around long before humans arrived on the scene. What started simply as a modification of breathing associated with enjoyable and playful interactions has acquired a symbolic meaning as an indicator of pleasure.
E. Pinpointing when laughter developed is another matter. Humans and chimps share a common ancestor that lived perhaps 8 million years ago, but animals might have been laughing long before that. More distantly related primates, including gorillas, laugh, and anecdotal evidence suggests that other social mammals can do too. Scientists are currently testing such stories with a comparative analysis of just how common laughter is among animals. So far, though, the most compelling evidence for laughter beyond primates comes from research done by Jaak Panksepp from Bowling Green State University, Ohio, into the ultrasonic chirps produced by rats during play and in response to tickling.
F. All this still doesn’t answer the question of why we laugh at all. One idea is that laughter and tickling originated as a way of sealing the relationship between mother and child. Another is that the reflex response to tickling is protective, alerting us to the presence of crawling creatures that might harm us or compelling us to defend the parts of our bodies that are most vulnerable in hand-to-hand combat. But the idea that has gained the most popularity in recent years is that laughter in response to tickling is a way for two individuals to signal and test their trust in one another. This hypothesis starts from the observation that although a little tickle can be enjoyable, if it goes on too long it can be torture. By engaging in a bout of tickling, we put ourselves at the mercy of another individual, and laughing is what makes it a reliable signal of trust, according to Tom Flamson, a laughter researcher at the University of California, Los Angels. “Even in rats, laughter, tickle, play and trust are linked. Rats chirp a lot when they play,” says Flamson. “These chirps can be aroused by tickling. And they get bonded to us as a result, which certainly seems like a show of trust.”
G. We’ll never know which animal laughed the first laugh, or why. But we can be sure it wasn’t in response to a prehistoric joke. The funny thing is that while the origins of laughter are probably quite serious, we owe human laughter and our language-based humor to the same unique skill. While other animals pant, we alone can control our breath well enough to produce the sound of laughter. Without that control there would also be no speech — and no jokes to endure.
The Origins of Laughter Passage Questions
Questions 1-6
Look at the following research findings (Questions 1-6) and the list of people below.
Match each finding with the correct person, A, B, C or D.
Write the correct letter, A, B, C or D, in boxes 1-6 on your answer sheet.
NB You may use any letter more than once.
1 Babies and some animals produce laughter which sounds similar.
2 Primates are not the only animals who produce laughter.
3 Laughter can be used to show that we feel safe and secure with others.
4 Most human laughter is not a response to a humorous situation.
5 Animal laughter evolved before human laughter.
6 Laughter is a social activity.
List of people
A Provine
B Zimmerman
C Panksepp
D Flamson
Questions 7-10
Complete the summary using the list of words, A-K, below.
Write the correct letter, A-K, in boxes 7-10 on your answer sheet.
Some scientists believe that laughter first developed out of 7 _______. Research has revealed that human and chimp laughter may have the same 8 _______. Scientists have long been aware that 9 _______ laugh, but it now appears that laughter might be more widespread than once thought. Although the reasons why humans started to laugh are still unknown, it seems that laughter may result from the 10 _______ we feel with another person.
A. combat
B. chirps
C. pitch
D. origins
E. play
F. rats
G. primates
H. confidence
I. fear
J. babies
K. tickling
Questions 11-13
Do the following statements agree with the information given in Reading Passage 1?
In boxes 11-13 on your answer sheet, write
TRUE if the statement agrees with the information
FALSE if the statement contradicts the information
NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this
11. Both men and women laugh more when they are with members of the same sex.
12. Primates lack sufficient breath control to be able to produce laughs the way humans do.
13. Chimpanzees produce laughter in a wider range of situations than rats do.
Other Reading Answers to Practise:
Stonehenge IELTS Reading Answers
What’s So Funny IELTS Reading Answers
The Origins of Laughter – IELTS reading answers with explanation
- Answer: B
Explanation: Paragraph D mentions the line “Elke Zimmerman, head of the Institute of Zoology in Germany, made a comparison between the sounds that chimpanzees and babies made in response to tickling during the first year of their life.” As the passage suggests, Elke Zimmerman assessed the sounds generated by chimpanzees and infants alike. These sounds were in response to tickling during the initial year of life. Hence, the most probable answer is B.
- Answer: C
Explanation: The last line of paragraph E goes like this; “So far, though, the most compelling evidence for laughter beyond primates comes from research done by Jaak Panksepp from Bowling Green State University, Ohio, into the ultrasonic chirps produced by rats during play and in response to tickling”. Hence, we can infer that the present research conducted by Jaak Panksepp from Bowling Green State University, Ohio, represents the strongest evidence that laughter is not just limited to primates. Therefore, the answer here is a definite C.
- Answer: D
Explanation: In paragraph F, the author clearly writes “Tickling can arouse these chips and as a result, they get bonded, which certainly seems like a show of trust.” These lines reflect the fact that Flamson suggests a connection between tickling, play, and trust in rats. Rats are known to play actively and frequently emit high-pitched sounds as well as chirps. The very act of tickling can generate these chirps, resulting in them engaging in playful behaviour. Since this can be determined as a feeling of trust, the answer here is D.
- Answer: A
Explanation: In the second line of Paragraph B, the author states “Robert Provine, a neuroscientist of the University of Maryland, in the mentioned paragraph, says that laughter is like a signal to others and almost disappears when we are alone.” On the basis of these lines, it can be deduced that laughter serves as an effective way of communication with others that tends to disappear when we are alone. Hence, the answer is A.
- Answer: B
Explanation: Paragraph D mentions “The similarities between the laughter of babies and chimpanzees, according to Elke Zimmerman, supports the theory that animal’s laughter evolved way before humans ever arrived on the scene.” After going through these lines, it is safe to say that there is a lack of proof behind the idea that chimpanzees and infants share similarities in the way that they laugh. Thus, the answer is B.
- Answer: A
In the third line of paragraph B, it is clearly stated that “Robert Provine, a neuroscientist at the University of Maryland. Provine found that most laughter comes as a polite reaction to everyday remarks such as “see you later”, rather than anything particularly funny”. These highlighted lines clearly insist that Mr Provine discovered that most laughter is a medium for people to be polite and kind to each other. Therefore, the best possible answer is A.
- Answer: E
Explanation: The first line of Paragraph C states “To find the origins of laughter, Provine believes we need to look at play. He points out that the masters of laughing are children, and nowhere is their talent more obvious than in the boisterous antics, and the original context is play.” This example insists that laughter came from the perspective of playful behaviour and mannerisms. Hence, the answer is E.
- Answer: D
Question Type: Summary Completion
Answer Explanation: The line “The question is: does this pant laughter have the same source as our own laughter? New research lends weight to the idea that it does.” clearly suggests that studies have discovered the chance of laughter sharing the same origins in both humans as well as chimpanzees. Therefore, the answer is D.
- Answer: G
Question Type: Summary Completion
Answer Explanation: This line in Paragraph E, “ So far, though, the most compelling evidence for laughter beyond primates comes from research done by Jaak Panksepp from Bowling Green State University, Ohio, into the ultrasonic chirps produced by rats during play and in response to tickling.” suggest that the scientific community has known of the laughter showcased by primates for a long time. However, recent findings have insisted that laughter is more prevalent than previously believed. Hence, the answer is G.
- Answer: H
Question Type: Summary Completion
Answer Explanation: In the last line of Paragraph F ie. “ “These chirps can be aroused by tickling. And they get bonded to us as a result, which certainly seems like a show of trust.”, the author suggests that no matter the unknown origins of human laughter, there is a possibility that it stems from the sense of assurance that we feel in the company of a fellow human beings. Hence, the answer is H.
- Answer: Not Given
- Answer: True
Question Type: True/False/Not Given
Answer Explanation: The line “while other animals pant, we alone can control our breath well enough to produce the sound of laughter” suggests that only humans possess the ability to control their breathing so as to generate laughter. This is unlike other animals that only have the ability to pant. Therefore, this statement is true.
12. Answer: Not Given
Neha Sharma is an IELTS faculty with a decade of experience in teaching IELTS. She holds a PhD in English from Stanford University, USA. Excelling in tailoring her teaching to individual student needs, she has helped over 50,000 students achieve their target scores. Actively involved in research, she ensures that her methods remain effective and innovative.
