Dr. Franz H. Messerli, a recognized expert in hypertensive cardio-vascular disease, has published over 600 papers and written 20 books. In 2012, in the prestigious New England Journal of Medicine, Dr. Messerli wrote a short article about Nobel prizes and chocolate consumption. His research uncovered a strong linear correlation (r=0.791, P<0.0001) between the number of Nobel laureates a country produced per capita and the average chocolate consumption. He noted a possible link between dietary flavonols in chocolate and the reversal of age-related cognitive impairment. In order to think more clearly, he suggested, people everywhere should eat more chocolate.

While the article was intended as a funny reminder not to allow correlations to lead to false claims, not all of Messerli’s colleagues appreciated the humor. Many complained that the New England Journal of Medicine would publish such a thing, rushing to discredit the idea that eating chocolate would lead to more Nobel prizes. One even noted that there was a strong correlation between the number of IKEA stores and Nobel Prizes in a country, although offering no suggestions as to why that might be. If you’ve ever assembled IKEA furniture, you might have some ideas on this.

Food correlations are popular because we all eat. If eating chocolate in search of a Nobel Prize is not your thing, perhaps getting a doctorate in Civil Engineering piques your interest. Data shows a correlation (r=0.958) between the per capita consumption of mozzarella cheese and the number of CE PhD’s awarded. Since mozzarella is a key ingredient of pizza, this may explain its legendary popularity with graduate students. <continue reading>