aesthetics of joy

Choose your friends wisely: new research says they can make you happy (or fat, or a cancer-stick-sucking addict for that matter). We’ve known since at least Darwin that joy is contagious in a momentary sense — smiling or laughing often causes others to engage in the same behavior and share the pleasure of a particular experience. But this new research suggests a more durable social influence in determining positive emotion.

Interestingly, the article also suggests that positive emotion is more contagious than negative emotion. So while it pays to start hanging out with your friends in the rose-colored glasses, it doesn’t mean you have to drop the Debbie downers entirely.
NYT: Is Happiness Catching?

In another interesting piece of news today, French president Nicolas Sarkozy says France will incorporate happiness measures into their GDP. Though it sounds a little like the touchy-feely Bhutanese accounting method on the surface, the new method is the brainchild of Nobel Prize-winning US economist Joseph Stiglitz. The revised indicators account for the economic benefits of welfare systems, holidays, and environmental measures, correcting what many see as a bias towards productivity at any social and ecological cost in the current figures.
FT: France to Count Happiness in GDP

What’s happening in the world of joy this week…

Phish’s new album “Joy” will be released Sept. 8; Band announces a limited edition “Joy Box” containing 1o posters designed for each of the album’s 10 tracks and an entirely separate album called “Party Time” (Rolling Stone)

Statisticians are attempting to develop a “happiness index” using Twitter (Central Penn Business Journal)

Giddy with social networking glee, Coca-Cola has created its own abbreviated URL, a la tinyurl and bit.ly: http://cokeurl.com/. Coke says: “Coke URL is just one way we’re making happiness easier to share.” (via Peter Feld)

New study shows happiness grows with age; apparently we get better at fighting off the cold-pricklies as we get older (US News & World Report)

Joyful music festival Woodstock celebrates its 40th anniversary this weekend, stoking the nostalgia of baby boomers everywhere