Which is just another illustration of how top executive pay retains a huge lottery element, even when remuneration consultants think they're being scientific and linking pay to performance.

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Thus, thrill-seeking CEOs bring a certain element of this personality trait into the executive suite, as reflected by more aggressive corporate policies.

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Or as an economist might put it, if there are positive externalities generated by a business (good things for the wider economy for which the company doesn't receive direct financial payment), the chief executive is already being amply rewarded for them by a surplus element in his or her pay.

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Aris Candris, chief executive of Westinghouse, said the nuclear accident in Japan added an element of uncertainty to the NRC's review.

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For Dan Wakeford, executive editor of In Touch Weekly, there has to be some element of surprise, news and emotion involved for an image to spawn a bidding war between the entertainment outlets.

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"The human element is always the most insecure, " says Jennifer Granick, executive director of Stanford's Center for Internet and Society.

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