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| Humor... And Then Some Having a laugh... And Then Some! |
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How do you develop a sense of humor?
by Richard L. Weaver II, PhD
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How do you develop a sense of humor?
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A Gathering of Scientists
A Gathering of Scientists
by Richard L. Weaver II, PhD
Scientists at the And Then Some
Publishing, LLC, (ATSP) laboratories located in the prestigious residential
community of Palo Alto, California, close to Stanford University, have
developed a technology that will determine whether or not listeners,
readers, subscribers, and others (unfortunately the technology is not
refined enough to distinguish among these), have an interest in, will want
to read, and will put to use material in the next book ATSP will publish.
The technology allows technicians to determine, based on an experientially
situated paradigm, whether or not those studied have an interest in and can
use a rule-based format.
What the scientists worked on first was fundamentals. Through a
scientifically developed procedure called “Remote Information Disclosure”
they discovered the role that learning fundamentals plays in people’s lives.
What they uncovered was that people preferred building a solid foundation
and knew that fundamentals opened alternatives and options. It surprised
scientists when they realized people also knew that fundamentals
supercharged creative juices, offered them strength, supplied the license,
permission, and authority to act, gave confidence and security, offered a
base for experimentation, and supplied a way to evaluate outcomes and assess
results. Scientists were stunned by the erudition and perspicacity of their
subjects.
When scientists detected the fact that most people preferred learning the
basics before proceeding to higher-order thinking and doing, they knew that
a rules-based, ordered presentation of ideas would be welcomed.
Scientists at the ATSP laboratories in Palo Alto then developed a series of
intricate, methodical, statistically based, controlled, experimental studies
that used before and after comparative populations, local central limit
theorems and high-order correlations of rejective sampling and logistic
likelihood asymtotics, and controlling for independent but not necessarily
identically distributed random variables, in a variety of environmental
settings, each with a designated control group, designed steps that would
move people from a fixed beginning point to an intangible and evasive
culmination whose objective would be to yield feelings of consummation and
fulfillment.
Throughout the experiments, the goal of the scientists was to accurately
record all of the acts, abilities, and skills demonstrated by study
participants. This was accomplished through the use of MP3 VoiceRecorders,
video cameras, as well as trained, paid, on-sight observers. These notes
were gathered, collated, and transcribed, and the results have been
preserved for public record in the United States Government Archival Records
and Transmissions Office (USGART) in Washington, D.C.
After working out progressive steps, and after explicating the competence
levels necessary to attain each of the prescriptions, scientists gathered in
focus groups to work out specific details and record their findings in ways
a lay public could comprehend. Each focus group had a designated participant
to take notes, reduce jargon to understandable verbiage, and make the final
report for each group.
At first scientists called their results theories, but they knew there would
be people who would misinterpret these “theories” as untested suggestions
that did not have proof nor universal acceptability. Axioms, maxims, and
canons were other considered possibilities. One scientist wanted to use the
word praxis because, for her, it represented the precision and accuracy of
their work. Finally, after much discussion and debate among the various
groups of scientists, the word “rules” was finally agreed upon — but only
after several hours of discussion and debate. The minutes of these final
discussions reflect lengthy debate and much disagreement.
To put their rules to a final test, each of the participating scientists was
required to prepare a brief, formal, final public presentation. The primary
requirement for this presentation was that it had to follow precisely the
rules they had established, and the success of each presentation would be
measured — by the other scientists, a gathering of family and friends, and a
group of trained, paid, objective professional observers — by how
faithfully, accurately, and literally each presentation subscribed to the
requirements set forth by the rules the scientists had previously agreed
upon.
For the purposes of the experiment, a standard, objective evaluation form
was constructed by a paid, outside, contracted agency. This was the
evaluation form used independently by each of the groups. Monitoring of the
use of the form was performed by the West Lake Detective Agency. The firm
was paid to make certain all judgments were independent and that no group-
decision making occurred during the evaluation period.
The day arrived, presentations were made, listeners responded
enthusiastically, critical evaluations took place uneventfully, results were
tabulated by an independent comptroller, and the results were announced at a
final banquet.
The vote on the motion was unanimous. There was loud and uproarious
applause, and with the announcement of the result of the vote, all
participants rose as one to not just acknowledge the results of the vote but
to support the need to have the results published.
It is with great pleasure and a great deal of pride that ATSP has been given
the privilege of publishing these results. The title of the book is Public
Speaking Rules! All you need to give a GREAT speech, by Richard L. Weaver
II, and when it becomes available it can be purchased at Amazon.com.
Happy April Fools’ Day! Everything in this essay is false except the last
sentence of the paragraph above. (As of this writing, the book is in the
final stages of preparation.)
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How do you develop a sense of humor?
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A Gathering of Scientists
