The hidden power of smiling - Ron Gutman

Summary

This inspiring speech explores the power of smiling, revealing how it's a natural human expression linked to happiness and longevity. Studies show smiles can predict life span and marriage success, with babies even smiling in the womb. Smiling's contagious nature and its ability to boost mood and health are highlighted, suggesting it's a superpower we're all born with.

Takeaways

• 🌟 The speaker's childhood dream was to become a superhero to save the world and make everyone happy.
• 🔍 In adulthood, the speaker turned to real science to find truth, starting with a UC Berkeley study on student photos and their future success.
• 🤔 The study found that the width of a student's smile in a photo could predict the success and fulfillment of their future marriage and life.
• 🏆 A Wayne State University study showed that the span of a baseball player's smile could predict their lifespan.
• 👶 We are born smiling, as evidenced by 3D ultrasound images of babies smiling in the womb.
• 🌍 Smiling is a universal human expression, even among isolated tribes like the Fore in Papua New Guinea.
• 👶🏻 Children smile as many as 400 times per day, which is more than most adults.
• 😊 Smiling is contagious and can suppress our usual facial muscle control, making it hard not to smile back.
• 🧬 Charles Darwin's facial feedback response theory suggests that smiling makes us feel good, not just a result of feeling good.
• 🍫 Smiling stimulates the brain's reward mechanism more than chocolate, according to British researchers.
• 💰 Smiling is as pleasurable as receiving a significant amount of money, and it can also reduce stress and improve health.

Q & A

What did the speaker initially believe was the source of superheroes' powers?

The speaker initially believed that superheroes' powers came from science fiction and intergalactic objects from Planet Krypton.

What did the UC Berkeley 30-year longitudinal study find about students' smiles?

The study found that the span of a student's smile in their yearbook photo could predict the success and wellbeing throughout their life, including the fulfillment and longevity of their marriage, their scores on standardized tests of well-being, and their inspiring nature to others.

What discovery was made from the Wayne State University research on baseball cards?

The research found that the span of a baseball player's smile in their pre-1950s card could predict the span of his life, with players who didn't smile living an average of 72.9 years and those with beaming smiles living an average of almost 80 years.

At what stage of development can babies be seen smiling?

Babies can be seen smiling even in the womb, as evidenced by 3D ultrasound technology.

What did the study by Paul Ekman in Papua New Guinea reveal about the universality of smiles?

The study revealed that even members of the Fore tribe, who were completely disconnected from Western culture and known for their unusual cannibalism rituals, attributed smiles to descriptions of situations the same way Westerners would.

How often do children smile on average per day?

Children smile as many as 400 times per day.

Why is it difficult to frown when looking at someone who smiles?

Smiling is evolutionarily contagious and it suppresses the control we usually have on our facial muscles, causing us to mimic the smile and experience it physically.

What did the mimicking study at the University of Clermont Ferrand in France show about our ability to judge smiles?

The study showed that our ability to judge whether a smile is real or fake is impaired when we cannot mimic the smile ourselves, such as when holding a pencil in our mouths to suppress smiling muscles.

What does Charles Darwin's facial feedback response theory suggest about the act of smiling?

Darwin's theory suggests that the act of smiling itself makes us feel better, rather than smiling being merely a result of feeling good.

How does smiling stimulate the brain according to the British researchers' study?

Smiling stimulates the brain's reward mechanism to a degree that even chocolate cannot match, with one smile generating the same level of brain stimulation as up to 2,000 bars of chocolate.

What are the health benefits of smiling mentioned in the script?

Smiling can help reduce stress by lowering cortisol levels, enhance mood by increasing endorphin levels, and reduce overall blood pressure.

How does smiling affect one's appearance and perception by others according to the Penn State University study?

Smiling makes a person appear more likable, courteous, and competent.