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Baskerville effect

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary

English

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Etymology

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Named after the Baskerville family from Arthur Conan Doyle's crime novel The Hound of the Baskervilles.

Noun

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Baskerville effect (plural Baskerville effects)

  1. (uncommon) The alleged self-fulfilling prophecy that there is an increase in rate of mortality through heart attacks on days considered unlucky because of the psychological stress this causes on superstitious people.
    Synonym: Hound of the Baskervilles effect

Further reading

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