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在論文中善用幽默的四大守則第四條：幽默要出人意表
【學術專欄】
寫學術論文的人常聽說不要用幽默來表達觀點。雖然這個告誡用心良苦，但完全不用幽默又太過頭了。幽默是有效的溝通方法，而寫作學術論文本就該懂得運用各種溝通方法。本系列文章說明如何用適當的方式，在學術論文中有效運用幽默。文章將刊登在 TPS 粉絲頁，最後集結於電子報。
Writers of academic papers are cautioned against employing humor to communicate their points. The caution is well-intentioned, but outright prohibition of lightly humorous material goes too far. Humor is a valid method of communication and authors of academic papers should have every method at their disposal. This series of columns will describe how humor can be effective and acceptable in scholarly writing. Each part in the series will be presented on the TPS Fan page before being compiled.
4th Humor Guideline – Use it Surprisingly
幽默守則第四條－幽默要出人意表
Comedians or naturally humorous people in social conversation are entertaining because they surprise listeners with something they say. When the mind is expecting to hear one thing and unexpectedly hears something else, it reacts. Researchers who explore how the brain reacts to unexpected stimuli affirm what lay observers already know to be true: Surprise stimulates learning by arousing the brain and drawing attention to a stimulus. Because humor surprises, academic writers should not forfeit it as a tool in stimulating and connecting with readers.
喜劇演員或有幽默天分的人平常聊天時很有趣，因為他們說的話讓人意想不到。如果心裡原本預期聽到某件事，但意外地聽到另一件事，便會有反應。有些研究人員探索大腦如何對意想不到的刺激反應，證實一般人都觀察到的事實：意外能激發大腦注意刺激，可促進學習。幽默讓人意想不到，因此寫作學術文章時，不應排斥用幽默來刺激讀者、和讀者交流。
On the other hand, people who reach for humor all the time in their communication injure their cause: They they accomplish just the opposite: They become too predictable. Surprise and predictability are communication opposites. When listeners or readers suspect that a punch line or a humorous twist is coming, they wait for it like vultures, ready to devour it if it isn’t lively. In the same way, academic writers who regularly inject humor set up themselves for failure. So, surprise readers. Deftly inject some well-chosen, amusing words at critical moments and win them over.
然而，有些人溝通時無時無刻都想表現幽默，反而會妨礙交流、適得其反，因為他們的行為太容易預料了。溝通時，「出人意表」和「不出所料」作用剛好相反，聽眾或讀者如果覺得接下來會出現詼諧笑料或風趣轉折，就會像禿鷹一樣等著，如果幽默不夠活潑就會遭到吞噬。同樣的，寫學術文章一再固定表現幽默，那就是在自討苦吃。所以要出其不意，在關鍵時刻巧妙地加入幾句精心挑選、風趣詼諧的話，這樣就能收服讀者的心。
A professor or academic adviser will react appropriately to an amusing aside—that is, he will instantly become more engaged and more comfortable with the writer. This will happen if the surprise gently lifts his spirits, doesn’t detract from the point being made, and merges seamlessly with the sentences immediately preceding and following. The humor should seem to be natural expression and be thoroughly integrated into the serous flow of the paper. When this happens, a reader will be moved by the engaging sentence without pausing to consider just what moved him.
教授或指導教授讀到穿插的笑話會有適當的反應，讀起文章很快會更加投入、更輕鬆愉快。要有這種效果，幽默必須出乎意料、令人精神一振，也不會轉移讀者對觀點的注意力，並和前後文融合得天衣無縫。幽默要表達地自然，並徹底結合文章的走向脈絡。如此一來，讀者會受生動的文句打動，但不會停下來思索打動他的是什麼。
Writers of academic papers are cautioned against employing humor to communicate their points. The caution is well-intentioned, but outright prohibition of lightly humorous material goes too far. Humor is a valid method of communication and authors of academic papers should have every method at their disposal. This series of columns will describe how humor can be effective and acceptable in scholarly writing. Each part in the series will be presented on the TPS Fan page before being compiled.
4th Humor Guideline – Use it Surprisingly
幽默守則第四條－幽默要出人意表
Comedians or naturally humorous people in social conversation are entertaining because they surprise listeners with something they say. When the mind is expecting to hear one thing and unexpectedly hears something else, it reacts. Researchers who explore how the brain reacts to unexpected stimuli affirm what lay observers already know to be true: Surprise stimulates learning by arousing the brain and drawing attention to a stimulus. Because humor surprises, academic writers should not forfeit it as a tool in stimulating and connecting with readers.
喜劇演員或有幽默天分的人平常聊天時很有趣，因為他們說的話讓人意想不到。如果心裡原本預期聽到某件事，但意外地聽到另一件事，便會有反應。有些研究人員探索大腦如何對意想不到的刺激反應，證實一般人都觀察到的事實：意外能激發大腦注意刺激，可促進學習。幽默讓人意想不到，因此寫作學術文章時，不應排斥用幽默來刺激讀者、和讀者交流。
On the other hand, people who reach for humor all the time in their communication injure their cause: They they accomplish just the opposite: They become too predictable. Surprise and predictability are communication opposites. When listeners or readers suspect that a punch line or a humorous twist is coming, they wait for it like vultures, ready to devour it if it isn’t lively. In the same way, academic writers who regularly inject humor set up themselves for failure. So, surprise readers. Deftly inject some well-chosen, amusing words at critical moments and win them over.
然而，有些人溝通時無時無刻都想表現幽默，反而會妨礙交流、適得其反，因為他們的行為太容易預料了。溝通時，「出人意表」和「不出所料」作用剛好相反，聽眾或讀者如果覺得接下來會出現詼諧笑料或風趣轉折，就會像禿鷹一樣等著，如果幽默不夠活潑就會遭到吞噬。同樣的，寫學術文章一再固定表現幽默，那就是在自討苦吃。所以要出其不意，在關鍵時刻巧妙地加入幾句精心挑選、風趣詼諧的話，這樣就能收服讀者的心。
A professor or academic adviser will react appropriately to an amusing aside—that is, he will instantly become more engaged and more comfortable with the writer. This will happen if the surprise gently lifts his spirits, doesn’t detract from the point being made, and merges seamlessly with the sentences immediately preceding and following. The humor should seem to be natural expression and be thoroughly integrated into the serous flow of the paper. When this happens, a reader will be moved by the engaging sentence without pausing to consider just what moved him.
教授或指導教授讀到穿插的笑話會有適當的反應，讀起文章很快會更加投入、更輕鬆愉快。要有這種效果，幽默必須出乎意料、令人精神一振，也不會轉移讀者對觀點的注意力，並和前後文融合得天衣無縫。幽默要表達地自然，並徹底結合文章的走向脈絡。如此一來，讀者會受生動的文句打動，但不會停下來思索打動他的是什麼。
