WARNING: This blog may be too strong for those with a sensitive olfactory system!! Just when you think you have read about every strange and unusual study/research that could possibly be done, something pops up to slap you on the head. I am tending to think, that anything and everything is permissable once you put 'research' or 'experiment' somewhere in the title.
PROFESSOR'S WHOOPEE CUSHION EXPERIMENT TO FIND FUNNIEST FLATULANCE NOISE
from The Telegraph, UK, Weird News Section
(Professor) Trevor Cox, 42, wants to discover which sounds make us laugh the most and has set up a website to help.
Visitors hear six noises and are asked to grade them depending on how much they make them laugh.
The acoustics professor, who works at Salford University in Manchester, has a long-running interest in the whoopee cushion and up until recently held the record for having the largest one in the world.
Prof Cox, who designs concert halls, said: "The whoopee cushion has much in 
common with the human voice (I feel so much better knowing this) and how wind instruments work, so it is a memorable way of portraying some important science.
"This is a great way to contribute to science just by having a laugh.
"For too long, acoustic engineers have concentrate on issues such as neighbour noise and concert hall acoustics, it is about time we got to the bottom of some more important fundamental issues.
"Really what acoustics is about is understanding people's responses to different sounds so I've come up with a website which samples whoopee sounds for people to go on, listen to and rate in order of funniness.
"The idea is to get people thinking about sounds. My theory - although it is unproven at this stage - is that people will laugh the most at something unexpected.
"Like with jokes - it is more funny if people don't expect the punchline. So the most unexpected noises will probably get the most votes.
Organisers at Comic Relief asked Prof Cox to come up with a sound experiment that involved the whoopee cushion - the new logo for comic relief along with the standard red nose.
Visitors are encouraged to donate to the appeal and can watch short YouTube videos revealing the secret science of whoopee cushions.
According to Professor Cox, who made worldwide headlines in 2007 with his horrible sounds research, there are some solid scientific principles behind why we find different whoopee noises funniest.
To take part in Prof Cox's experiment go to http://www.soundsfunny.org
