Can You Spot A Genuine Smile?

“A smile is a curve that sets everything straight.” —Phyllis Diller

Sometimes a smile is not a smile, it turns out. According to scientists, reading a smile correctly is difficult for us humans. Hah hah ha! Unless you're a smile researcher with a magical bag of glittery equations and fancy software, that is.

The BBC offers a fun survey that'll test your ability to tell a real smile from a fake one. They use real video of people smiling. Or not. I was able to correctly identify only 14 out of 20. My ability seemed to improve along the way as I got only one wrong in the end half. We can always improve and that's cause for a real smile.

Take the test yourself at www.bbc.co.uk/science/humanbody/mind/surveys/smiles.

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