Up@dawn 2.0

Monday, February 18, 2013

How To 'Thrive': Short Commutes, More Happy Hours

When you look at Americans' day-to-day activity the top two things we hate the most on a day-to-day basis is, No. 1: housework and No. 2: the daily commute in our cars. In fact, if you can cut an hourlong commute each way out of your life, it's the [happiness] equivalent of making up an extra $40,000 a year if you're at the $50- to $60,000 level. Huge. So it's an easy way for us to get happier. Move closer to your place of work... 
That's easy for him to say. But I'm sure he's right.

How To 'Thrive': Short Commutes, More Happy Hours : NPR

Friday, February 8, 2013

Happy? a squishy philosophical question

in recent years, Canada, France and Britain have added measures of citizen happiness to their official national statistics. The U.S. government is now considering adopting a happiness index as well.
This makes a certain amount of sense. Everything a government does — hiring soldiers, building bridges, providing pensions — is supposed to make citizens happy.
Economists and psychologists have been collecting happiness data for decades. They can quantify how unhappy noise pollution makes people who live near an airport. They know that people hate commuting and that we get less anxious as we get older.
But once you get into the details, there's a lot of debate over the happiness data. One big divide: Should you ask people how they're feeling right now, or how they feel about their life in general?
You get different answers depending on what you ask. Which one is more important is a squishy, philosophical question...
How Happy Is America? : Planet Money : NPR

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Happynomics
Can money make you happy? If not, maybe you’re doing something wrong? Happynomics is about the economics of happiness.
Here and Now’s Robin Young sat down with three leaders in the field of Happynomics at Boston Museum of Science event, and they explored the topic.
Below are some of their big ideas on the interesection of money and happiness.
 Can Money Make You Happy? WBUR Here & Now