I propose that the monkey be used for the base unit of humor. My meat-friends, of course, have been listening to me say this for years. But I think it makes sense and should become an international standard.

Monkeys are inherently funny. However, they're not bust-a-gut, laugh-till-you-cry funny, unless they do something funny. Just sitting there, looking like they're people, doing nothing but stinking, they're one (1) monkey funny. Actions performed by a monkey can rate more than one monkey in funny, such as this one monkey at the zoo that kept motioning for my sister to come closer, and closer, and when she got within range he pissed on her. Except from the victim's standpoint, that was about 10 monkeys funny- as funny as 10 monkeys sitting there doing nothing. An episode of poo-flinging can rate into the hundreds of monkeys funny.

Note that when there are multiple monkeys are in sight, the potential for humor is exponential, yet inactive monkeys will rate no more than the sum total of monkeys. Plus there's the fact that you can only look at so many monkeys at once. So the unit of one monkey funny is consistent regardless of how many there are.

I'd say someone lifting something heavy and then having their pants fall down is about eight monkeys funny. Schadenfreude always rates pretty high. A movie character getting kicked in the crotch is one monkey funny, that is, as unfunny as something can get and still be considered humor.

It goes without saying that as the base unit of humor, a monkey is indivisible. Half of a monkey is not funny at all.