The world's funniest joke has been officially revealed - and it's been selected for it's "real universal appeal".
Scientists - including one with a PhD - analysed a study started on a website 20 years ago to select the gag, which makes us "feel superior to others".
More than 1.5 million people across the world rated five randomly selected jokes out of a database of more than 40,000 jokes, and the best-ranked was this;
Two hunters are out in the woods when one of them collapses. He doesn't seem to be breathing and his eyes are glazed. The other guy whips out his phone and calls the emergency services. He gasps: "My friend is dead! What can I do?" The operator says: "Calm down, I can help. First, let's make sure he's dead." There is a silence, then a shot is heard. Back on the phone, the guy says: "OK, now what?"
Dr Richard Wiseman, a psychologist who led the study ahead of International Joke Day which was on Friday, said: "Many of the jokes submitted received higher ratings from certain groups of people, but this one had real universal appeal.
"Also, we find jokes funny for lots of different reasons. They sometimes make us feel superior to others, reduce the emotional impact of anxiety-provoking situations or surprise us because of some kind of incongruity. The hunters joke contained all three elements."
Dr Wiseman, a University of Hertfordshire academic, set up the study on website LaughLab in 2001, reports The Guardian.
He said the sense of surprise in any joke is important, sentiments echoed by Scott Weems, author of Ha! The Science of When We Laugh and Why.
Speaking to HuffPost, Mr Weems said: "I believe comedy tastes vary so widely because humour isn't about setups or punchlines. Instead it's about the 'kick of the discovery', thinking one way and then suddenly turning that thinking around.
"Shock and surprise are needed for that turn, but there must be a destination too. The reason dead baby jokes are so unappealing is that the same ingredient providing the shock also leaves us with some unfortunate imagery once the joke is over."
