All sorts of things make us happy, from the home we live in to the whisk that beats the eggs for our morning omelette. We are seeking to discover what you buy that delivers the most happiness. In return, we’ll include some responses in an upcoming New Scientist feature, and give one winner a truly joy-inducing bookshelf.

All entries will be entered to win 14 beautifully bound, iconic and award-winning works of science and natural history provided by the Folio Society. We’ll also showcase the results in our 29 March 2014 issue, in a feature article all about happiness.

All you have to do is take our brief survey telling us in which purchase over the past 10 years has given you the most pleasure, and why. And if you’re willing, we’d also like to see a photograph of that favourite purchase – or of you enjoying it!

The 14 gorgeous hardcover books provided by the Folio Society are: Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems by Galileo Galilei; The Ascent of Man by Jacob Bronowski; Fermat’s Last Theorem by Simon Singh; The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat by Oliver Sacks; The Double Helix by James Watson; How the Mind Works by Steven Pinker; Ideas and Opinions by Albert Einstein; Life by Richard Fortey; Surely You’re Joking Mr Feynman co-authored by Richard Feynman; On the Origin of Species by Charles Darwin; The Scientist: An epic of discovery by Andrew Robinson; Structures: Or why things don’t fall down by J.E. Gordon; Taming the Infinite: The story of mathematics by Ian Stewart; and The Selfish Gene by Richard Dawkins.


Only subscribers and registered users are eligible to win, so be sure to log in or register before you enter. Registration is free and no purchase is necessary. The closing date for entries is 2359 GMT on Sunday 9 March 2014. Full terms and conditions are below.

Click here to enter by taking our survey.

Terms and conditions: 1. This competition is open to anyone aged 18 or over, except for employees of Reed Business Information Limited and any company involved in the sponsorship of the competition. 2. Entry is open only to subscribers and registered users. Submit your entry, including your full name and email address, by completing the survey. 3. Every eligible entrant will be entered into a draw to win all the prizes featured on this page. Prizes cannot be exchanged. 4. Only one entry is permitted per person. No purchase is necessary. 5. New Scientist shall not be responsible for technical errors in telecommunication networks, internet access or otherwise, preventing entry at this website. 6. Entries must be received by 2359 GMT on Sunday 9 March 2014. Entries made after this time will not be counted. 7. Every effort will be made to notify the winner by email by 9 April 2014. 8. Submitting your entry constitutes your consent for us to use your entry, name and photos (if applicable) for editorial or publicity purposes. 9. Reed Business Information Limited reserves the right to ask for proof of age and evidence to verify the identity of an entrant at any time, and may use any channels and methods available to carry out checks of any details provided. Entrants may only enter the competition in their own name. Entries submitted through agents or third parties will not be accepted. 10. You hereby warrant that your entry will not infringe the intellectual property, privacy or any other rights of any third party, and will not contain anything which is libellous, defamatory, obscene, indecent, harassing or threatening. 11. Winners’ names will be available by writing to “Stuff competition”, Lacon House, 84 Theobald’s Road, London WC1X 8NS 12. New Scientist reserves the right to change or withdraw the competition and/or prize at any time. 13. By entering the competition, entrants are deemed to have accepted these terms and conditions. Reed Business Information Ltd, Quadrant House, The Quadrant, Sutton, Surrey, SM2 5AS. Registered in England, No 151537