A healthcare weekly reports today on research conducted by
psychologists at UVA In reaching their findings, the researchers
conducted a series of experiments with different age groups of
children who had happy or sad moods induced with the aid of
music (Mozart and Mahler) and selected video clips (Jungle Book
and The Lion King). The groups then were asked to undertake
simple tasks that required attention to detail. Apparently, the
kids forced to listen to crusty classical music did better than
ones who couldn’t get the catchy Disney tunes out of their heads
(personally, Elton John’s cheesy Lion King songs make me kinda
sad, I’m not sure about smarter). "Happiness indicates that
things are going well, which leads to a global, top-down style
of information processing," said lead researcher Simone Schnall
of Plymouth University, of the "The good feeling that
accompanies happiness comes at a hidden cost," said co-author
Vikram Jaswal, an assistant professor of psychology at the