"Everything is amazing and nobody is happy" - a Fu

Stumbling on Happiness: Daniel Gilbert | Blog I recently wound up in the emergency room. Don’t worry, it was probably nothing. But to treat my case of probably nothing, the doctor gave me a prescription for a week’s worth of antibiotics, along with the usual stern warning about the importance of completing the full course. I understood why I needed to complete the full course, of course. What I didn’t understand was why a full course took precisely seven days. Why not six, eight or nine and a half? My doctor seemed smart. Certain numbers have magical properties. But these magic numbers don’t just dominate our thoughts and dictate our words; they also drive our most important decisions. Consider my prescription. Italy! Magic “time numbers” cost a lot, but magic “10 numbers” may cost even more. And yet, research shows that fingers affect finances. The hand is not the only part of our anatomy that gives certain numbers their magical powers. The sound a number makes can influence our decisions about it. • Osborne, M. • Coulter, K.