Interesting Facts

According to a study in the Journal of Marketing Research the actual taste of inexpensive wine improves, if the label looks expensive. (In one experiment a group tasted the same wine from different bottles, and the more the tasters liked the label, the more they liked the wine. Another survey back in 2012 , found that consumers believed heavier bottles were more expensive and contained higher-quality wine. It seems we really do taste with our eyes, and it means we have a tendency to enjoy wine (as well as other products) more when we think they’re expensive.  Seemingly a carefully crafted label can make us think that something is more expensive than it actually is, so much so that people enjoy identical products such as wine or chocolate more if they think they have a higher price tag. Of course that doesn't explain the Primark effect.)

According to research from Heinz Cup a Soup, 31% cent of Brits are so protective of their favourite cup or mug that they would never let anyone else drink from it. (In fact nearly 60% of Brits have an "emotional attachment" to their favourite mug, and a third said they would feel "angry" or "totally devastated" if their mug broke, with 42% adding that their favourite mug is not replaceable. According to food psychologist Christy Fergusson we become attached to these simple everyday objects.  Thaler coined the term 'endowment effect'. When we touch something, it almost becomes an extension of us. You can create a deeper connection to it and associate memories, emotions and feelings with objects. It's a mug!)

According to the Halifax bank, over the last 27 years pocket money in the UK has outstripped wages with payouts to children up 462%. (Children have seen a rise from on average  £1.13 a week to  £6.35, but over the same period, the typical annual wage for working adults has increased by just 188%, from £11,648 in 1987 to £33,511 in 2014. I think the difference is that children aren't afraid to ask for a rise.  After all, no one is going to sack them because they cost too much, are they?) Of course parents paying out pocket money might want to click here (sorry kids).

The top 5 countries in the Global Wellbeing Index, published by the United Nations, are Switzerland, Iceland, Denmark, Norway and Canada. (The researchers believe that the differences in happiness can be explained by 6 factors: levels of gross domestic product (GDP), life expectancy, generosity, social support, freedom and level of corruption. The US is 15th, the UK is 21st, but Germany is only 26th.) Source

The Queen has dropped out of the top 300 in the Sunday Times Rich List, for the first time. (The richest man in Britain is Warner Music owner Len Blavatnik with a fortune of £13.17bn! The Queen had been in the Rich List every year since she actually topped the first list in 1989, but you need a personal fortune of £100m to become one of the 1,000 richest people in the country. That's up £15m compared with the entry point of £85m in 2014. In 1997 it took a fortune of just £15m to join Britain's richest 1,000 people. Did I just say just £15m? Ridiculous!)

Over the last 50 years short-sightedness amongst children in the UK has doubled. ( In the 1960s just 10% of British 12 and 13-year-olds had myopia, today that is 23%. Experts are blaming this increase on our increasingly indoor lifestyles and use of computers.   And it's not just happening in the UK, in the US in the 1970s 25% of children were diagnosed myopic, by the year 2000 this had risen to over 40%.  In China The journal Nature reported that around 90% of China's teenage and young adult population are short-sighted, up from 10 to 20% of the total population 60 years ago. One Chinese city is so worried, they are experimenting with transparent classrooms to expose children to more sunlight. How about giving them more time and space to play outside?)

According to the Catholic Church, the number of women in Britain choosing to become nuns has trebled over the last five years. (However, I doubt this is some kind of religious revival in the UK: In 2004, only seven women opted to become nuns, this rose to 15 in 2009 and 45 in 2014. So, why the increase?  Fr Christopher Jamison, director of the Vocations Office of the Catholic church, said: “There is a gap in the market for meaning in our culture, and one of the ways in which women may find that meaning is through religious life.”  A gap in the market? My how times change. Personally, I think the movie Sister Act might have played a role too.)