Why do people consider the number seven lucky?

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Why do people consider the number 7 lucky?
Thanks for asking.
Back in 2015, 10,000 participants at Newcastle University's Numbers Festival were asked what their favourite number was. Perhaps unsurprisingly, 12.6% of them answered the number 7, making it the most popular number of them all.
Some said they didn't know why they chose 7 But, as you know, the number tends to have positive connotations, and is associated with luck in particular. That's especially true in western societies. How far back does the legend of lucky number 7 go? From the earliest civilizations, the number 7 has held symbolic significance. In many cultures, 7 was linked to celestial bodies, like the 7 visible planets, adding a cosmic element to its allure. Religious texts such as the Bible's 7 days of creation, and the 7 heavens of Islamic tradition, further cemented its importance. 7's prime status in mathematics, and its frequent appearance in natural phenomena like the rainbow's 7 colours, contributed to its perceived magical properties, solidifying its lucky status. How has the concept of luck contributed to the number 7's prominence? Luck is often tied to uncertainty and chance. It fuels our fascination with the number 7 Gamblers around the world consider it lucky, perhaps due to its association with risk taking and the thrill of chance. Its frequent use in games of chance like dice or card games has perpetuated its mystique. Psychologically, humans seek patterns and meaning in randomness. That inclination is known as pareidolia, and you may remember we ran a dedicated episode on the subject a while back. The frequent occurrence of 7 in historical narratives and cultural rituals amplified its perception as a luckbringer, showcasing our predisposition to find significance in this number. Are there any scientific or logical reasons behind the number 7's lucky reputation? Psychologist George A. Miller came up with a theory in 1956, which was entitled The Magical Number 7 Plus or Minus 2 Miller argued that it wasn't a coincidence that the number 7 was all around us. He suggested that our minds can process 7 things at once, that we can remember 7 items in a single glance. The plus or minus 2 part means we can usually store somewhere between 5 and 9 pieces of information in our short-term memory. That's where Miller's Law originated, and it was then tested on a significant number of people. It turned out that on average, the limit of short-term human memory precision was indeed 7, plus or minus 2
Our brains are able to retain 7 new pieces of information at a time, or think about 7 things at once. There you have it.
Now you know why people consider the number 7 lucky. In under 3 minutes, we answer your questions and help you understand the true meaning behind the trends, concepts, and acronyms that are making headlines. Listen along and you will really know it for sure.

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