Dr Bronwyn Tarr: How to live a happy life

[yosito]

This makes me wish there was a dating app which could match me with people based on the similarity of the music we listen to. Just yesterday I was driving to work rocking out to some Spanish punk rock and thinking that if I could just find a partner who also listens to Spanish punk rock we'd probably have a lot more in common than any of the people I meet though existing dating apps.

Edit: There is such an app. It's called Tastebuds. Downloading it now to check it out.

Edit: Ok, the app sucks. It doesn't match you with people based on your music, it just lets you add music you like to your profile.

[jeffbr13]

Not been on Tinder in a while, but a year ago there was definitely the option to add a 'favourite track' to your profile, as an extra bit of information on top of your Facebook likes.

[byproxy]

Tastebuds.fm did match based on music similarities, last time I checked. Although it was a bit shallow as it only matched based on number of artists shared. I think better matching would also take diversity of tastes into account and how much importance you place on certain artists. It does have a feature to tag 6? artists as favorites, but that's it.

[Paul_S]

Sharing music tastes is about as important as sharing hair colour.

[jph]

Bronwyn Tarr's research on synchrony is fascinating. See e.g. her paper on silent disco dancing. I speculate that good teamwork programming may be activating related areas of the mind. I know coders who develop together can achieve a kind of flow, a synchrony of purpose. Can these coders gain the health benefits of bonding and endorphins?

See her publications https://www.psy.ox.ac.uk/team/bronwyn-tarr

"[W]e propose that synchrony might act as direct means to encourage group cohesion by causing the release of neurohormones that influence social bonding. By acting on ancient neurochemical bonding mechanisms, synchrony can act as a primal and direct social bonding agent, and this might explain its recurrence throughout diverse human cultures and contexts (e.g. dance, prayer, marching, music-making)."

[kitd]

I wonder if she's ever looked at rowing (she should have enough guinea pigs in Oxford). Nothing else I've done in life has come close to the bonding I've felt after a hard season's competition in a rowing crew, the epitome of synchrony.

[replicatorblog]

MARTIAL, the things that do attain The happy life be these, I find:— The richesse left, not got with pain; The fruitful ground, the quiet mind;

The equal friend; no grudge, no strife; No charge of rule, nor governance; Without disease, the healthful life; The household of continuance;

The mean diet, no delicate fare; True wisdom join'd with simpleness; The night dischargèd of all care, Where wine the wit may not oppress.

The faithful wife, without debate; Such sleeps as may beguile the night: Contented with thine own estate Ne wish for death, ne fear his might.

— Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey. 1516–47, translated from Martial's Epigrams (Born 38 AD).

[andrem]

Ah yes. The one stop shop to a happy life.

We are quite a finnicky species and trying to shoehorn everyone into the same mold is probably not a recipe for great happiness.

Just accept that people are different, you won't find happiness following someone else's rulebook and do the things that matter to you. Accept those things as your source of happiness.

If your sources of happiness are not compatible with society in general do them where you can enjoy them on your own or with a group of likeminded peers.

Do not be concerned about how unique you are. Embrace it.

If you are not unique embrace that too.

Focus on what it is that you really want to do.

Life will be over soon enough.

Stop chasing your happiness and live life. Happiness will follow :)

[nickthemagicman]

I like mountain biking, Jeffrey Dahmer liked munching on people's legs. Diff strokes for diff folks.

[rak00n]

> "Focus on what it is that you really want to do."

The older I'm getting the more it seems like this is the true fountain of life. Something that will keep you going no matter what happens in your life and wake you up with bright eyes in the morning.

[mattmanser]

So instead of listening to a Doctor from Oxford University, who has obviously studied this extensively, we should listen to you?

[ENTP]

Bronwyn is a beautiful Welsh name.

[shams93]

Don't be born working class, don't take student loans, if you want to be happy you have to exploit other people cause it's a dog eat dog would be exploited or exploit kind of world with no love or caring or community

[thinkMOAR]

So you read the title on HN and decided to post this comment which basically has no relation with the actual article?

Though to address your comment:

Keep in mind, some are happy to be the working class, know what they have to do between 9-5 because somebody told them to do that.

Some enjoy being a student, think their student years are the best years of their life. Why is that not worth a loan?

Some people could be happy exploiting others, some actually like it when they get exploited. (there are freaky people ont his planet; don't judge).

Some people are happy when others care for them, others are happy when they can care for others.

Happiness one can only decide for themselves; and the grass is always greener at the house next-door....

[groby_b]

There is caring. People care enough about your comment to debate it. There is community - that's what HN is, a community of people. Some you hate, some you love, and many you just exist with, like any other community.

But being right here, you are part of a community that does care about what you have to say. A community that - in the sense of Agape - loves you.

[geff82]

What a negative view of life...

[wslh]

It depends where you live. There are many places in the world where you study for free, have free health coverage and don't need to be a millionaire to live well.