Standup comedy is older than you think + In the age of AI, we still prefer the human touch

Standup comedy dates back to the medieval ages: The Heege manuscript — an ancient text that dates back to the 15th century — reveals the first historical record of a stand-up comedy routine, according to an article by Cambridge University professor James Wade published in the Review of English Studies. The manuscript gives “us the rarest glimpse of a medieval world rich in oral storytelling and popular entertainments,” Wade said, noting that people in the Middle Ages showed mastery in live performances. The ancient manuscript also includes the first use of some phrases that are commonly used today, like “red herring. The term, which means giving a false clue to a reader or a viewer, was used in a satirical mocking of medieval society, a common feature in standup comedy acts today.

What makes the manuscript even more significant is that it offers insight into the changes that were happening across the medieval social strata through the texts of the minstrels — musicians or performers in medieval times — who had access to the wealthiest families. The minstrels’ performances, some of which were documented in Heege’s manuscript, showed indications that they poked fun at different aspects of medieval society, from peasants’ day-to-day struggles to ridiculing aristocrats.

Even though AI has spread its tentacles into several industries, consumers still prefer to purchase items that have been made by human hands, concludes research by the Wall Street Journal. Despite AI and machines’ ability to create products accurately and efficiently, it seems that people prefer the human touch when it comes to purchases that have symbolic value — an anniversary gift, a tattoo, or a customized item.

Why? Human-made items are unique, as opposed to their AI counterparts that are identical, and hold no special quirks, nooks, or crannies that make them special.

Save the best for human hands. The outcome of the WSJ research suggests that businesses should reconsider automating everything, rather, they should inquire about what “should” be automated by listening to their customers. As a result, they can market a product that was made by human hands, in turn, adding value to it. Doing so can justify the humans that will still be employed when AI forces hordes of employees out of the labor market, they add.