Take part in a happiness experiement today

Would you like to take part in an experiment to raise the happiness of the whole country?

Great!

Professor Richard Wiseman of the University of Hertfordshire is conducting an experiment that aims to measure the change in happiness possible by doing a short, easy excercise.

If you go the the web site (in the link in the title of this post) you will see a short questionnaire and a short video.

The idea is to fill in the questionnaire to measure the before and after effect of the experiment.

Professor Richard Wiseman, who is leading the study, has high hopes that it will, if enough people participate.

"It's well known that happiness is catching," said Prof Wiseman, from the University of Hertfordshire. "We hope to spread happiness around the UK. No-one's ever tried cheering up a whole country before, and it's the right time to do it with everyone feeling gloomy from the recession.

"Whether or not it will work depends on how many people take part. I've no idea what the tipping point is. Potentially somewhere like London, which is densely populated, you might find people smiling a lot more. It's a mad idea but it might just work."

For the experiment to succeed, at least 10,000 people need to take part, said Prof Wiseman, adding: "We're hoping for more than that."

Let me know how you get on!