Scatter Brained

C H A P T E R   5

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116
S C A T T E R B R A I N E D
03
 Phobias! 
(Th
  ree Pages of Nothing to Fear but Fears Th
 emselves!)
TRISKAIDEKAPHOBIA
What You Fear:
 the number 13
Real Reason to Fear It:
 Well, the whole world can’t be wrong. 
From Turkey to Paris, 13 has been reviled for centuries.
Related Phobias:
 Arithmophobia (the fear of numbers more 
generally—and a rational phobia if ever there was one)
Noted Sufferer:
 Composer Arnold Schoenberg intentionally 
misspelled Aaron in his opera 
Moses und Aron
 to keep the title 
from having 13 letters; morbidly afraid of 13, he died on Fri-
day the 13th.
Surprising Fact:
 Schoenberg might not have been nuts. A 
1993 British study showed that Friday the 13th really 
is
 bad 
for your health—according to the study, hospital admissions 
rise as much as 52 percent.