I have had quite a bit of trouble starting the 'Happiness Machine' project... So I finally started with a simple social experiment. I spent one morning on the trip between my home and University (roughly one and a half hours) smiling at every person that I made eye contact with. This felt somewhere between normal and creepy for me, I am used to smiling at people but sustaining this is actually quite an exposing and personal experience...
There was an undeniable trend in the reactions from the individuals I engaged with a smile... Smiling and then instantly looking away.
This would suggest to me that smiling is a rather instinctual response, I had once heard that people are naturally quite empathetic and that expressions and emotions are often mirrored back at whom they originate from. This would explain the instinctual smile back and then upon recognising their lack to familiarity with me as an individual the aversion so they would not be obligated into making any further contact with me.
I guess that often when a stranger makes contact with you in this way they want something from you and this suspicion is therefore justified although I couldn't be sure that this is the common psyche.
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