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The idea of sparking joy has been made famous in Marie Kondo's runaway bestseller, "The Life-Changing Art of Tidying Up". The basic concept is that if an item 'sparks joy' when you hold it, then you should keep it and if it doesn't spark joy, discard it.

Sparking joy seems to be a great way to analyse almost any situation. Imagine if we asked, ‘Will this spark joy?' before every action and took corrective action if the answer is 'No'. Would our lives change significantly as a result?

The question is intended to elicit an emotional response.  Science likes to be less emotional and more objective while feeling joy is purely subjective. This can be confronting for the more analytical among us. Those looking for facts that can be universally applied may struggle with the uniquely personal nature of what sparks joy in me, compared with what sparks joy in you. What sparks joy for each of us will almost certainly be different.

The emotions around colour are similar …...