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Comedy Vocab — spread the words!
By charles | January 3, 2010
For Immediate Release…
www.comedyvocab.com
Emmy-Nominated Writer and Princeton PhD
Expands Vocabularies with Comedy Vocab iPhone App
(HOLLYWOOD, CA) – Imagine increasing your vocabulary through word games and Word-A-Day sentences like:
1. Frenetic:
Jane was frenetically dusting all through the house, like a hummingbird darting from one flower to the next, so I knew she was off her meds again.
2. When he discovered that his 72 virgins did nothing more than cuddle, the suicide bomber realized he had entered _______.
(A) contrition
(B) catharsis
(C) refractory
(D) perdition
(E) blandishment
That is exactly what author Charles Horn aims to provide with his new iPhone app Comedy Vocab.
“I wanted to give people a fun new approach to vocabulary building,” says Charles, an Emmy-nominated comedy writer (Robot Chicken) who holds a PhD from Princeton University. “Most people see the value in increasing their vocabulary, but all the Word-A-Day calendars and vocabulary builders currently out there are just boring ineffective texts that put you to sleep.”
The comedic approach to learning provided through his company Learning is Funny utilizes professional Hollywood comedy in the pursuit of education. Charles first used this approach in his book The Laugh Out Loud Guide: Ace the SAT Exam without Boring Yourself to Sleep! (Andrews McMeel Publishing), which uses comedy to prepare students for the dreaded SAT. This time around, Charles says he wanted to provide material for adults looking for fun forms of self-improvement and college students who have to take standardized tests — tests that can make or break their graduate school admission and career prospects.
Rather than being released in book form, the material is initially being released as an interactive app for the iPhone and iPod Touch. Charles is both author and software engineer for Comedy Vocab.
“The interactive and gaming element was crucial,” said Charles. “The problem with vocabulary building is not the words themselves – after all, one can just read a dictionary and all the words are right there. The problem is the tedium that arises from trying to memorize something boring with which you can’t relate. Comedy, together with games and interactivity, solves the problem and makes vocabulary building accessible to just about anyone.”
However, while the app is certainly meant to be outrageous and laugh-out-loud funny, it is by no means a joke.
“Research shows that comedy enhances learning, reduces stress, makes subjects more interesting, and increases recall,” states Charles. “People can now literally laugh their way to a stronger vocabulary.”
Comedy Vocab is available on the iTunes App Store for $1.99, or less than the price of a cup of coffee.
Available now for your iPhone or iPod Touch
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Charles Horn is an Emmy-nominated Hollywood comedy writer. He also has a Ph.D. from Princeton University and holds a total of five degrees in engineering and mathematics. Charles has written for the wildly popular animated series Robot Chicken, Robot Chicken: Star Wars, Pink Panther, and The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. He is also author of The Laugh Out Loud Guide: Ace the SAT Exam without Boring Yourself to Sleep!
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