Well, This Explains A lot

Killing time, I came across the web site of Professor Richard Wiseman, author of Quirkology, and this little nugget of news about the influence our last names have on success, by chance or choice.

Excerpt from the Daily Telegraph article:

Everyone participating in the Telegraph experiment was asked to indicate their sex, age, surname and rate how successful they had been in various aspects of their life, such as their health, finances, career, and "life in general." Scores in all these categories were added up to obtain an overall "measure of success."

The results revealed that readers whose surnames began with letters at the beginning of the alphabet did indeed rate themselves as significantly more successful overall than those with surnames starting with lowly, end-of-the-alphabet initials.

The surname effect was especially pronounced when it came to career, suggesting that alphabetical discrimination was alive and well in the workplace. Interestingly, the effect was also more visible in men than in women. This may, of course, reflect the fact that many women change their surname when they marry. Perhaps women who are considering whether to adopt their husband's surname should take into account the alphabetical implications - or choose a real Alpha-male in the first place.

Brief note about tomorrow's featured photo (since words are under embargo on Wednesdays, right?). It's going to be from the family archives, so it isn't your imagination that everyone looks a lot younger.