Love and work — who knew the two were so intimately connected? Based on new research by Bloomberg Business, it turns out that your job could help you predict who you'll end up marrying. By scanning US Census Bureau data covering 3.5 million households, Bloomberg compiled this cool interactive chart that shows how people are pairing up by profession.

Here are the most common matchups for 23 jobs:

SEE ALSO: People with these jobs are the most likely to marry each other

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Elementary- and middle-school teachers

Female elementary-school teachers are most likely to marry male or female elementary- and middle-school teachers.

Male elementary-school teachers are most likely to marry female elementary- and middle-school teachers or male education administrators.

Flight attendants

Female flight attendants are most likely to marry male managers or female flight attendants.

Male flight attendants are most likely to marry female flight attendants or male elementary- and middle-school teachers.

Physicians and surgeons

Female physicians and surgeons are most likely to marry male or female physicians and surgeons.

Male physicians and surgeons are most likely to marry female physicians and surgeons or male registered nurses.

Candy hearts and boxes of chocolate line the shelves of stores, just waiting to be purchased by smitten lovebirds.

But is that doesn't describe you, or at least not yet, don't fret!

In the interest of bolstering your love life, here are some science-backed ways to fall and stay in love:

SEE ALSO: 6 strange things love does to your brain and body

DON'T MISS: Couples in lasting relationships typically wait this long to start having sex

Listen up.

This may seem like a no-brainer, but it's actually super critical for all parts of a relationship — at the beginning and when that honeymoon period ends and the inevitable conflicts arise.

A 2010 study of 373 couples from the University of Michigan found that those who were able to discuss issues calmly and listen to their partner when having an argument were less likely to separate later on than couples who didn't do this.

Business Insider also chatted with psychotherapist M. Gary Neuman, who said that listening is key to falling in love because we have a need to be heard.

Make eye contact.

Maybe that staring contest isn't such a bad idea. Zick Rubin, a social psychologist, conducted a study back in 1970 on 158 college-age couples who were dating. By observing how much time the couples made eye contact and how they responded to a survey about their relationships, he was able to conclude that the more eye contact the couple made, the stronger their relationship.

Other studies have arrived at similar conclusions, and that even among people who are strangers, staring into each other's eyes appears to increase feelings of intimacy.

Give thanks.

A "thank you" can go a long way not just for the recipient of the remark, but for the one making it as well. A 2010 study found that people who felt grateful for a kind act done by their partner also reported feeling closer to him or her. The feeling of gratefulness was more important than the act itself.

While it may not make the human resource managers of the world happy, more than half of American professionals say they have participated in an office romance, according to Vault.com’s annual office romance survey.

Of those who have dated a coworker, 42 percent said they had an ongoing, casual relationship; 36 percent said they had a “random office hookup;” 29 percent had been in a serious, long-term relationship; and 16 percent had met their spouse or partner at work.

Workplace romances are most common in the hospitality and tourism industry, where 62 percent of workers say they’ve gotten romantic with a coworker. Love is also in the air in the consumer products industry, where 59 percent of workers have dated each other, and in the retail and advertising business (58 percent).

More than one in 10 people said that they were currently in a relationship with a coworker, and nearly two-thirds said they would have another office romance. The majority of workers who’ve been involved in an office romance said they’ve had more than one.

Acceptance of office romances varies, with 6 percent of workers believing that they’re completely unacceptable, 33 percent disapproving when they’re between co-workers at different levels; and 30 percent believing that co-workers who collaborate on projects shouldn’t collaborate on anything else.

Women are more likely than men to have participated in an office romance, but they tend to engage in more long-term relationships. Men are more likely than women to have engaged in a random office hookup, or an ongoing, casual relationship. 

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Adam Galinsky, a professor at Columbia University, has published more than 150 scientific articles, chapters, and teaching cases in the fields of management and social psychology. His new book "Friend & Foe" with coauthor Maurice Schweitzer is about the balance of conflict and cooperation in almost every interaction.

We asked him why it's so common for people to fall in love with a coworker. 

Produced by Grace Raver. Camera by Darren Weaver.

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It's almost Valentine's Day, and for many, the pressure is on to find that special someone.

Whether you're simply looking for a date or hoping to find something that lasts, you could benefit from the decades of psychological research on the qualities that women find most attractive in a male partner.

We've rounded up some of the most compelling scientific insights, so you can step up your game.

SEE ALSO: 13 science-backed ways to appear more attractive

DON'T MISS: 9 things you're doing that make people dislike you immediately

Look for the universal signals of flirtation.

Rutgers University anthropologist and best-selling author Helen E. Fisher says that from the depth of the Amazons to the cafés of Paris, women signal interest with a remarkably similar sequence of expressions.

As she shared at Psychology Today, it goes like this:

First the woman smiles at her admirer and lifts her eyebrows in a swift, jerky motion as she opens her eyes wide to gaze at him. Then she drops her eyelids, tilts her head down and to the side, and looks away. Frequently she also covers her face with her hands, giggling nervously as she retreats behind her palms.

This sequential flirting gesture is so distinctive that [German ethologist Irenaus] Eibl-Eibesfeldt was convinced it is innate, a human female courtship ploy that evolved eons ago to signal sexual interest.

Look for someone "in your league."

Men — and women — are attracted to people who are as attractive as they are.

In one study, for example, researchers at the University of California at Berkeley looked at the behavior of 60 male and 60 female users on an online dating site. While the majority of users were inclined to reach out to highly attractive people, they were most likely to get a response if that person was about as attractive as they were (as judged by independent raters).

"If you go for someone roughly [equal] to you in attractiveness, it avoids two things,"Nottingham Trent University psychologist Mark Sergeant, who was not involved with the study, tells The Independent. "If they are much better-looking than you, you are worried about them going off and having affairs. If they are much less attractive, you are worried that you could do better."

Present yourself as high status.

In 1969, University of North Carolina sociologist Glen Elder found that looks and wealth tend to find one another — namely, good-looking women tended to settle down with less attractive but wealthier men. 

Since then, it's become a well-confirmed finding in the social sciences.

Most recently, a 2010 study found that men pictured with a Silver Bentley Continental GT were perceived as way more attractive than those pictures with a Red Ford Fiesta ST, and a 2014 study found that men pictured in a luxury apartment were rated more attractive than those in a control group. 

Why the attraction to resources? Evolutionary psychologists speculate it's because women want a mate who can provide for them.

Watch just about any romantic comedy or talk to your haughtiest married friends and you'll see that single life is wrapped in stigma. As the stereotype goes, single people would be much better off if only they got married.

As New York University sociologist Eric Klinenberg writes in his book, "Going Solo," when discussed publicly, the rise of living alone is often presented as an unmitigated social problem and a sign of diminished public life.

But not everybody thinks this way.

In the US, people are getting hitched less often than they once did, and young Americans are putting off marriage more than ever before.

In 1962, half of 21-year-olds and 90% of 30-year-olds had been married at least once. In 2014, only 8% of 21-year-olds and 55% of 30-year-olds had been married.

According to Bloomberg, single Americans are now the majority.

"For decades social scientists have been worrying that our social connections are fraying, that we've become a society of lonely narcissists,"Klinenberg tells The New York Times. "I'm not convinced."

And neither are a number of researchers. These studies begin to unpack the question of how being single affects your success:

SEE ALSO: 9 scientific ways having a child influences your success

Single people are more social.

A recent study on marital satisfaction released by the National Bureau of Economic Research and previously reported on by Business Insider suggests that the happiest people are those who are married to their best friends.

The authors concluded that partners can provide each other with a unique kind of social support and help each other overcome some of life's biggest challenges, and people with the most difficult lives — for example, middle-aged people, who often experience a dip in personal well-being — can benefit the most.

However, there are other kinds of social support that single are more likely to have the edge on.

Research suggests that, compared to married people, Americans who have always been single are more likely to support and stay in touch with their family and are more likely to help, encourage, and socialize with friends and neighbors.

Klinenberg explains that, despite extraordinary external pressure that can lead to self-doubt, being single doesn't condemn someone to a life of feeling lonely or isolated.

"On the contrary, the evidence suggests that people who live alone compensate by becoming more socially active than those who live with others, and that cities with high numbers of singletons enjoy a thriving public culture," he writes.

Single people have more individual freedom.

Klinenberg also believes that, in the age of expanding digital media and growing connectedness, being single offers a clear advantage: more restorative solitude.

More alone time helps people discover who they are and what gives their life meaning and purpose, he explains.

"Living alone helps us pursue sacred modern values — individual freedom, personal control, and self-realization — whose significance endures from adolescence to our final days," Klinenberg writes. 

Single people pay some monetary penalties.

According to two Atlantic writers who crunched some numbers, single women can pay as much as $1 million more than their married counterparts over a lifetime.

The writers looked at the tax penalties and bonuses, as well as living expenses like health spending and housing costs. 

According to the US Department of the Treasury Office of Tax Analysis, more married couples under the age of 65 on average see bonuses than not for filing joint tax returns, something single people can't do.

According to the BLS data the Atlantic writers looked at, single women spent 7.9% of their annual income on their health, compared to couples who spent on average 6.9%.

And when it came to housing, single people tended to pay more: While married couples spent on average 23.9% of their annual income on housing, single men spent 30.3% and single women spent 39.8%. 

By combining resources and splitting costs, married people have the edge on all kinds of day-to-day expenses in addition to rent or mortgage: One cable bill, one utilities bill, and shared groceries can all lead to big savings.

Love may not be a drug, but it can certainly feel like one.

Being in love floods our brains with chemicals that can induce feelings of everything from pleasure to intense focus and attachment.

But being in love isn't all in our heads: these chemicals can cause reactions throughout the body, which might help explain that tingly-all-over feeling we get when we see a loved one, or the "high" we feel after we've met that special someone.

Take a look at how love affects our brains and bodies:

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NOW READ: Psychologist says these 2 patterns of behavior are the most common signs that a couple is going to divorce

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NOW WATCH: 5 scientifically proven ways to make someone fall in love with you

Relationships are never easy. By definition they entail connections between people, and people, as we all know, are eternally complicated creatures.

Relationships also come in all sizes and colors — there are romantic relationships, work relationships, and friendships, just to name a few. 

Regardless of what kind of relationship you want to save, each is fundamentally similar to the next in a number of ways.

In all healthy relationships, we are able to listen well, empathize, connect, resolve conflict, and respect others.

The following TED talks are a great refresher course in doing just that. 

Esther Peril's "Rethinking infidelity ... a talk for anyone who has ever loved."

Perel, a licensed marriage and family therapist, traveled the world for 10 years examining hundreds of couples affected by cheating to find out why people cheat, even when they're happy, and what "infidelity" actually means?

She questions whether infidelity needs to be the ultimate betrayal it's perceived to be.

"When a couple comes to me in the aftermath of an affair that has been revealed, I will often tell them this: Today in the West, most of us are going to have two or three relationships or marriages, and some of us are going to do it with the same person," Perel says. "Your first marriage is over. Would you like to create a second one together?"

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Yann Dall'Aglio's "Love — you're doing it wrong."

Dall'Aglio, a French philosopher and author of "A Rolex at 50: Do you have the right to miss your life?" and "I love you: Is love a has been?," says love is the desire of being desired. But in a world that often favors the self over others, how can people find the tenderness and connection they crave?

It may be easier than you think: "For a couple who is no longer sustained, supportedby the constraints of tradition, I believe that self-mockeryis one of the best means for the relationship to endure," he says.

In this surprisingly convincing talk, Dall'Aglio explains how acknowledging our uselessness could be the key to sustaining healthy relationships.

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Brené Brown's "The power of vulnerability."

Brown, a research professor at the University of Houston Graduate College of Social Work, studies how humans empathize, belong, and love, and her approach to embracing vulnerability and loving whole-heartedly could fundamentally change the way you live, love, work, and parent.

"When we work from a place, I believe, that says, 'I'm enough,' then we stop screaming and start listening,we're kinder and gentler to the people around us,and we're kinder and gentler to ourselves," she says.

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Though it can be bewilderingly awkward, dating is good for you. 

Like, will-shape-the-rest-of-your-life good for you. 

Relationship psychologist Peter Pearson tells Tech Insider that single people should "date as much as they can manage or tolerate." 

Because compatibility is something you can only find out about firsthand.

"I don't think you can go to a mountaintop and reflect on what you're seeking and wait for the great gods of romance to send you clarity in a bolt of lightning," says the cofounder of the Couples Institute in Menlo Park, California. 

A lot of what you're looking for in dating depend on your frame of reference.

If you're not interested in committing to someone, Pearson says, compatibility might be as simple as reasonably good chemistry in the match, a partner with a nice sense of humor, that you can have fun with, or someone that shares your amount of interest in sex.

But when you start seeking out a mate, that taste begins to evolve. 

So long as you go and figure out what actually works with you. 

"We get clear by going out with different people," he says. "You realize you really like this, you don't like this, and x is a deal breaker. That’s good because it generates clarity — you get clarity through experience." 

But, Pearson says, a lot of people overlook something when they're figuring out what kind of person they'd like to be with: what kind of person they'd have to be to attract that partner and make a relationship work. 

When you think about it that way, instead of looking for someone who can take care of all your needs, you're seeking someone you can be on a team with. 

"If I go out as a single person and say this is what I want my partner to be and look like, I am looking at it like I’m consuming something, not giving something," he says. "If I think about what’s required of me, it’s mutuality."

And mutuality, studies have shown, is the path to lasting, healthy relationships.

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In honor of Valentine's Day, we've decided to feature some of the hottest power couples on Wall Street. 

The range here is wide.

We have fund managers who date well-known actresses. We have bankers who are married to attorneys and television anchors. We even have someone who is married to a princess.

We wish them all a Happy Valentine's Day.  

Socialite Nicky Hilton and banking heir James Rothschild

Status:Married

Her: Hotel heiress, socialite, and fashion designer.

Him: He's the 30-year-old son of the late Amschel Rothschild, the executive chairman of Rothschild Asset Management.

Princess Madeleine and hedge funder Chris O'Neill

Status: Married

Her: She's a Swedish princess. 

Him: O'Neill was a partner and head of research at Noster Capital, a value-investing hedge fund. He doesn't have a royal title. 

Fun Fact: The couple has a daughter, Princess Leonore, and a son, Prince Nicolas.

Chelsea Clinton and hedge funder Marc Mezvinsky

Status: Married

Her: Chelsea is the daughter of President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hilary Clinton. She has previously worked for Mckinsey & Co., Avenue Capital, and was a correspondent for NBC. 

Him: He's a partner at Eaglevale Partners LP. He has previously worked at Goldman Sachs and New York-based hedge fund G3 Capital. 

Fun Fact: The couple welcomed a baby girl, Charlotte, in September 2014.

SEE ALSO: A psychologist who’s studied couples for decades says this is the best way to argue with your partner

CHECK OUT: The science behind why you sometimes end up dating terrible people

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: A relationship expert reveals the key to a thriving relationship

Scores of psychological studies suggest that, for guys, attractiveness isn't just about the way you look.

From being a talented musician to walking a dog, there are plenty of traits and behaviors that can amp up your sex appeal to women — especially if you're looking to land a long-term relationship.

A growing body of research on romantic attraction has focused on the importance of altruism: Men who display helping behaviors are generally perceived as more attractive than those who don't.

In a 2013 study on the topic, researchers had young, heterosexual men and women rate pictures of other men and women on how attractive they would be for short- and long-term relationships.

Some of the people pictured were said to engage in altruistic behaviors, such as volunteering at a homeless shelter. Other people pictured were described in neutral ways, such as "loves Chinese food."

Both men and women rated the altruistic people as more attractive for long-term relationships — but women showed a stronger preference for altruism than men did.

More recent research suggests that altruism could be even more appealing than good looks.

In a study published this year, researchers looked exclusively at heterosexual women's preferences for attractiveness and altruism in men.

About 200 women were asked to look at photographs of men's faces. Half those faces had been determined to be extremely physically attractive; the other half had been determined to be extremely physically unattractive.

The women saw two pairs of faces at a time, one attractive and one unattractive.

Each pair of faces was displayed alongside a description of a scenario and how each man behaved. For example: "two people are walking through a busy town and see a homeless person sitting near a cafe." One man goes into the cafe and buys a sandwich and tea for the homeless person; the other man pretends to use his cellphone and walks straight past the homeless person.

All the women were asked to rate each man on how attractive he was for a short- or long-term relationship.

The researchers walked away with several key findings.

First, as previous research had found, altruistic men were more attractive than nonaltruistic men.

Second, altruistic men were more attractive for long-term than short-term relationships. When it came to short-term relationships, nonaltruistic men were in fact more desirable than altruistic men.

Perhaps the most striking finding was that altruism appeared to be even more appealing than physical attractiveness when it came to long-term relationships. Unattractive men high in altruism were rated more attractive for long-term relationships than attractive men low in altruism.

It's hard to say whether these study findings apply to real-life interactions. But they do suggest that, if you're a man looking for a committed relationship with a woman, you shouldn't hesitate to flaunt the fact that you're an unpaid mentor for elementary-school kids or that you help your elderly neighbor buy groceries every week.

It could be an easy way to gain an edge over the more self-oriented guys out there.

SEE ALSO: 13 science-backed ways to appear more attractive

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NOW WATCH: Women are more attracted to men with these physical traits

Will you be my Valentine?”

People all across the country say those words in the run-up to February 14 and the Valentine’s Day holiday.

Whether you’re asking a brand new paramour or a long-term partner, the question can evoke feelings both of romantic uncertainty and possibility.

But for the well-being of ourselves and our relationships, “Will you be my Valentine?” is the wrong question. Instead, the more important question to ask yourself is “Should you be my Valentine?”

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Office romances are more common than you might think — according to a recent CareerBuilder survey, as many as 37% of American workers say they've had one.

Sometimes you're already dating when you start working together; sometimes you meet on the job.

The problem is, not all of these relationships are successful: Only one-third end in marriage.

So what do you do if the relationship ends, but you still have to see each other every day at the office?

To get some insights on working with an ex, we talked to Mary Lorenz, a corporate communications manager at CareerBuilder, and a woman who's been working with her ex-boyfriend for months. 

Here's what you need to know for those inevitable awkward run-ins at the coffee machine:

1. Read the handbook.

"First and foremost," says Lorenz, "know your company's policy on intra-office dating before you get involved with a colleague."

As Jacquelyn Smith reports for Business Insider, even if there aren't any formal policies prohibiting office romances, it's a good idea to find out how upper management feels about it.

2. Separate work and life.

In the wake of a breakup with a coworker, Lorenz advises people to "maintain the utmost professionalism. Don't bring your personal problems up at work and don't let them affect your work."

But can't you confide in one trusted coworker? Probably not a good idea.

"Don't discuss personal relationship issues with colleagues," Lorenz says. "Not only can it come across as unprofessional, but it could make them uncomfortable and make you the target of office gossip."

3. Don't air your dirty laundry.

Whether you and your ex are arguing over custody of your cat or who cheated on who, it's best to schedule a time before or after work hours to have the conversation.

"If you are having problems with an ex, discuss it outside the office," Lorenz says.

4. Switch it up.

If you're not interested in leaving your company after breaking up with a coworker, there are alternatives.

"If you feel that working with an ex is too much of a distraction, try to limit your interactions as much as possible," Lorenz says. "See if you can move to a different team, department, or project. Depending on the size and culture of the company, being honest with your boss about why you want to do so can help you make a case for this."

5. Set guidelines.

The 22-year-old woman who's been working with her ex-boyfriend said she actually helped him land a job at the company where she's currently interning. Working with him has been a mixed bag: Sometimes they've been arguing and it's awkward to pass each other on the way to the bathroom or the kitchen, she said. Other times, they're on perfectly good terms. Somehow she's managed not to tell any of her coworkers.

Her one piece of advice for people in a similar situation? "Figure out boundaries. Boundaries, boundaries, boundaries. Especially if there's unresolved tension between the two of you. It's confusing and distracting to have that hovering around in the same office as you. And emotionally exhausting."

Granted, she said, that's easier said than done. But the goal is to "focus on doing your own career, your own thing, so that your ex can do the same." 

SEE ALSO: 17 science-backed ways men can appear more attractive to women

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NOW WATCH: 4 characteristics of a doomed relationship

What if love weren't as passive as we tend to picture it being?

What if, instead of stumbling into it as a result of chance or fate, we actively choose it?

In 1997, State University of New York psychologist Arthur Aron tested the idea that two people who were willing to feel more connected to each other could do so, even within a short time.

The experiment is featured prominently in a recent Modern Love column in The New York Times, in which the author pointed to the questions as the springboard into her own romance; more on that here.

For his study, Aron separated two groups of people, then paired people up within their groups and had them chat with one another for 45 minutes. While the first group of pairs spent the 45 minutes engaging in small talk, the second group got a list of questions that gradually grew more intimate.

Not surprisingly, the pairs who asked the gradually more probing questions felt closer and more connected after the 45 minutes were up. Six months later, two of the participants (a tiny fraction of the original study group) even found themselves in love— an intriguing result, though not a significant one.

Here are the 36 questions the pairs in Aron's test group asked one another, broken up into three sets. Each set is intended to be more intimate than the one that came before.

Set 1

1. Given the choice of anyone in the world, whom would you want as a dinner guest?

2. Would you like to be famous? In what way?

3. Before making a telephone call, do you ever rehearse what you are going to say? Why?

4. What would constitute a "perfect" day for you?

5. When did you last sing to yourself? To someone else?

6. If you were able to live to the age of 90 and retain either the mind or body of a 30-year-old for the last 60 years of your life, which would you want?

7. Do you have a secret hunch about how you will die?

8. Name three things you and your partner appear to have in common.

9. For what in your life do you feel most grateful?

10. If you could change anything about the way you were raised, what would it be?

11. Take four minutes and tell your partner your life story in as much detail as possible.

12. If you could wake up tomorrow having gained any one quality or ability, what would it be?

Set 2

13. If a crystal ball could tell you the truth about yourself, your life, the future or anything else, what would you want to know?

14. Is there something that you’ve dreamed of doing for a long time? Why haven’t you done it?

15. What is the greatest accomplishment of your life?

16. What do you value most in a friendship?

17. What is your most treasured memory?

18. What is your most terrible memory?

19. If you knew that in one year you would die suddenly, would you change anything about the way you are now living? Why?

20. What does friendship mean to you?

21. What roles do love and affection play in your life?

22. Alternate sharing something you consider a positive characteristic of your partner. Share a total of five items.

23. How close and warm is your family? Do you feel your childhood was happier than most other people’s?

24. How do you feel about your relationship with your mother?

Set 3

25. Make three true "we" statements each. For instance, "We are both in this room feeling _______."

26. Complete this sentence: “I wish I had someone with whom I could share _______.”

27. If you were going to become a close friend with your partner, please share what would be important for him or her to know.

28. Tell your partner what you like about them; be very honest this time, saying things that you might not say to someone you’ve just met.

29. Share with your partner an embarrassing moment in your life.

30. When did you last cry in front of another person? By yourself?

31. Tell your partner something that you like about them already.

32. What, if anything, is too serious to be joked about?

33. If you were to die this evening with no opportunity to communicate with anyone, what would you most regret not having told someone? Why haven’t you told them yet?

34. Your house, containing everything you own, catches fire. After saving your loved ones and pets, you have time to safely make a final dash to save any one item. What would it be? Why?

35. Of all the people in your family, whose death would you find most disturbing? Why?

36. Share a personal problem and ask your partner’s advice on how he or she might handle it. Also, ask your partner to reflect back to you how you seem to be feeling about the problem you have chosen.

Try them out, and let us know what happens.

NOW WATCH: Adam Savage Of 'MythBusters' Says This Scientific Fact Blows His Mind

READ MORE: Here's the big problem with the idea of 'falling' in love

SEE ALSO: Scientists say one behavior is the 'kiss of death' for a relationship

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NOW WATCH: Why You Should Have Only 3 Things In Mind When Looking For Love

John and Ann Betar know a thing or two about relationships — they've been married for 83 years.

When they met, Ann was still in high school. John was working selling produce and would often give her rides to school, the Washington Post reports. Despite Ann's father's misgivings about John, the two eloped when she was just 17.

Today, John is 104 years old and Anne is 100. After more than eight decades of marriage, Worldwide Marriage Encounter declared them the "longest married couple in America."

In honor of Valentine's Day, cleaning startup Handy asked Twitter users to tweet relationship questions for the couple the answer. Over 100 people chimed in with questions. Here are some of our favorite responses.

They also gave parenting advice. In addition to their own kids, the Betars have 14 grandchildren and 16 great-grandchildren.

And here's what the couple has to say to all you newlyweds out there.

You can see all of the Betar's answers here.

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Even the most intelligent and empathetic people are plagued by psychological pitfalls that prevent them from fully understanding other people.

In fact, we're pretty much hardwired to make mistakes in our judgments of and behavior toward others.

Here, we've rounded up 15 cognitive biases that affect our everyday interactions. The scary part is that most of them happen without us even noticing.

SEE ALSO: 20 cognitive biases that screw up your decisions

Choice-supportive bias

When you choose something, say a boyfriend or girlfriend, you tend to feel positive about it, even if the choice has flaws. For example, you may think your dog is awesome — even if it bites people every once in a while — and that other dogs are stupid, since they're not yours. 

Curse of knowledge

When people who are well-informed cannot understand the common man. For instance, in the TV show "The Big Bang Theory," it's difficult for scientist Sheldon Cooper to understand his waitress neighbor Penny. 

Empathy gap

Where people in one state of mind fail to understand people in another state of mind. If you are happy, you can't imagine why people would be unhappy. When you are not sexually aroused, you can't understand how you act when you are sexually aroused.

NASA's New Horizons spacecraft took us to Pluto for the first time in July 2015. Scientists are astonished by the incredible features they've observed on the dwarf planet, including a 1,000 mile wide region covered in nitrogen snow that resembles a heart. But we have reason to believe Pluto's heart is a bit warmer than the ice the covers it. 

Produced by Alex Kuzoian

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Think back to the last time your partner did something nice for you.

Now think about how you reacted to that little act of kindness.

Research suggests that people who are grateful — not just by saying a quick "thanks" but also by internally processing that gratitude — get a happiness boost.

More importantly, they also tend to feel more connected to their significant other and better about their relationship overall.

A recent study by Sara Algoe, a psychologist at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, found that on days when partners reported feeling more grateful for their significant other's acts of kindness, they also reported feeling more connected to that person. 

In other words, what mattered wasn't how often someone in the relationship did a thoughtful thing — it was how grateful the partner reported feeling about it. 

Amie Gordon, a psychologist at the University of California at Berkeley, has also studied how gratitude can affect couples. In a series of studies, she found that the more grateful couples said they were the time she first questioned them, the more likely they were to still be in that same relationship nine months later.

It's not just about saying thank you

Psychologically speaking, processing gratitude may be different than simply expressing it. So rather than simply saying "thank you" to the person who held the door open, try focusing on how you feel about the person who did that kind act.

"My definition of gratitude," writes Gordon in a blog post for Psychology Today, "includes appreciating not just what your partner does, but who they are as a person. You're not just thankful that your partner took out the trash — you're thankful that you have a partner who is thoughtful enough to know you hate taking out the trash."

Researchsuggests that one of the reasons being grateful feels so good is because it helps kick-start a cycle of positive vibes. In other words, when we start beinggrateful, we're more likely to continue to feel positive in the minutes or months ahead. 

And the people around us probably feel it too.

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Happiness is one of the most important things in life, yet it's also one of the hardest to study.

Psychiatrist Robert Waldinger is the director of the Harvard Study of Adult Development, one of the longest and most complete studies of adult life ever conducted. Waldinger described some of the secrets to happiness revealed by the study in a recent TED talk.

The study followed two cohorts of white men for 75 years, starting in 1938:

• 268 Harvard sophomores as part of the "Grant Study" led by Harvard psychiatrist George Vaillant
• 456 12- to 16-year-old boys who grew up in inner-city Boston as part of the "Glueck Study" led by Harvard Law School professor Sheldon Glueck

The researchers surveyed the men about their lives (including the quality of their marriages, job satisfaction, and social activities) every two years and monitored their physical health (including chest X-rays, blood tests, urine tests, and echocardiograms) every five years.

They came away with one major finding: Good relationships keep us happier and healthier.

In his TED Talk, Waldinger pointed out three key lessons about happiness:

1. Close relationships

The men in both groups of the Harvard study who reported being closer to their family, friends, or community tended to be happier and healthier than their less social counterparts. They also tended to live longer. By comparison, people who said they were lonelier reported feeling less happy. They also had worse physical and mental health, as defined above.

A 2014 review of dozens of studies published in the journal Social and Personality Psychology Compass suggests that loneliness can get in the way of mental functioning, sleep, and well-being, which in turn increases the risk of illness and death.

2. Quality (not quanity) of relationships

It's not just being in a relationship that matters. Married couples who said they argued constantly and had low affection for one another (which study authors defined as "high-conflict marriages") were actually less happy than people who weren't married at all, the Harvard study found.

However, the effect of relationship quality seems to depend somewhat on age. A 2015 study published in the journal Psychology and Aging that followed people for 30 years found that the number of relationships people had was, in fact, more important for people in their 20s, but the quality of relationships had a bigger effect on social and psychological well being when people were in their 30s.

3. Stable, supportive marriages

Being socially connected to others isn't just good for our physical health. It also helps stave off mental decline. People who were married without having divorced, separating, or having "serious problems" until age 50 performed better on memory tests later in life than those who weren't, the Harvard study found.

And other research backs this up. A 2013 study in the journal PLOS ONE found that marriage, among other factors, was linked to a lower risk of mild cognitive impairment and dementia.

All of this suggests that strong relationships are critical to our health.

Society places a lot of emphasis on wealth and "leaning in" to our work, Waldinger said. "But over and over, over these 75 years, our study has shown that the people who fared the best were the people who leaned in to relationships, with family, with friends, with community."

You can watch the full TED talk here.

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