The Molecule of Happiness

Why are we obsessed with the things we want, only for them to lose their appeal the moment we get them? Why does addiction seem "perfectly logical" to an addict? The answer to these questions and many more is a single word: dopamine. Dopamine is the chemical that always craves more—more things, more stimuli, more surprises. In the pursuit of all this, we are not deterred by emotions, fear, or morality. Dopamine is the reason we seek and succeed, why we discover and prosper. But it is also why we gamble and squander.