Thanks to globalization, many of the world’s have-nots are smiling a lot more these days, argues Wright, a visiting scholar at the University of Pennsylvania and the author of Nonzero: The Logic of Human Destiny (2000), and he has the scientific assays of global sunshine to prove it.

"Psychologists have gone to dozens of nations, rich and poor, and asked people how satisfied they are with their lives," he explains. The results indicate "a clear connection between a nation’s per capita gross domestic product (GDP) and the average happiness of its citizens"—but only up to the point where GDP per capita reaches about $10,000 a year. That’s about where Greece, Portugal, and South Korea are today.

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