My latest article in The Austin Statesman is now available online. It begins:
You would expect that with the virtual world at our fingertips, it should be relatively easy to locate an ideally suited partner. Yet in reality, the Internet has made navigating the dating landscape more challenging than ever. As I spent the past two years composing “The Science of Kissing,” I learned a great deal about what attracts two people together. It turns out that real chemistry involves many nonverbal signals that are impossible to detect when searching for love from behind a laptop.
Sure, there are obvious online benefits: The singles pool is no longer limited to one town or community, so those looking for a partner can literally shop through thousands of profiles as easily as looking for holiday gifts. In mere seconds, a long list of available men or women can be presented for consideration, a feat that might make even Genghis Khan jealous. Securing a date this way is a quick and efficient dip into a boundless sea — where there are always other fish.
Through an ever-growing number of website services, users gain insight into each other’s “personalities” long before they ever have a real conversation, exchange a single e-mail, or send a virtual “wink.” Prospective “dates” can be sorted by income, body type or any specified parameter — assuming the information they submit is accurate. Those who don’t fit your prescribed set of standards conveniently disappear before they even cross your screen so there’s no need to waste an evening on an awkward, star-crossed first date. What could possibly be better, faster, or a more reliable indicator of shared values and interests?
Science suggests it’s an old-fashioned, traditional encounter.
Read on…
I had an article in Sunday’s Washington Post entitled, Sealed with a kiss – and neuroscience. It begins:
A kiss at midnight to ring in the new year. That’s what Friday night should bring, right?
It’s tradition, compulsion, festive duty. An excuse to make a bold move with someone new, a reason to be anxious about finding a date or a chance to celebrate with a longtime love. And there’s pressure to get it right.
There is a scientific basis for those high stakes. Whom you kiss can set the course for a good year. Really. It’s not magic – it’s chemistry and neuroscience. And no matter how painstakingly you set the scene, in the end chemistry trumps mood music. From a scientific perspective, a kiss is a natural litmus test to help us identify a good partner. Start the first moments of 2011 with the right one, and you’re beginning the year on a natural high.
Just what is it that makes kissing such a powerful and significant part of the human experience?
Read the full piece at WashPo…
I’ve been accepting questions about The Science of Kissing and bufferyourlife has asked:
hey! I was reading DISCOVER magazine, december issue I think, and they were explaining how humans were actually the only known species to kiss when they showed feelings from one another… and that the only other species that somehow had a similar behavior were apes but they kissed only as excitement and they did not used tongue, it was just a pressed kiss… so are we the only animals that kiss passionately in order to show feelings such as love or are there other animals that also do such a thing? Thanks!
It’s a terrific question and I’m glad you brought up that DISCOVER piece because I wrote it.
When it comes to describing similar behaviors across the animal kingdom, scientists have to be very careful. We cannot assume that other species experience the same emotions as we do. So instead of words like “love,” behaviorists use phrases like “mate choice” or “selective proceptivity.”
In Chapter 2 of The Science of Kissing, I go into detail describing how “kissing-like behaviors” can serve a variety of purposes from affection to feeding to conflict depending on the species and individuals involved. More in the book…
I’m currently reading the following books for a review–both come out in January:
The Panic Virus: A True Story of Medicine, Science, and Fear by Seth Mnookin, who’s an editor at Vanity Fair and wrote the New York Times bestseller Feeding the Monster.
Deadly Choices: How the Anti-Vaccine Movement Threatens Us All, by Paul Offit, previously well known as the author of Autism’s False Prophets and a Point of Inquiry guest
I’m not going to comment more right now, as the books are stirring up a lot of ideas but my thoughts aren’t complete.
But these are both pro-vaccine books by well established authors, and for that reason, I know blog readers here will be interested in both of them.
So click the links or the covers for more.
I’ll say a lot more once my review is published.
With just weeks til launch, The Science of Kissing‘s Booklist review!
“What’s the big deal? You pucker up, and there you are-right? Turns out there’s a lot more to kissing than you might think. For instance, you never forget your first kiss isn’t just a sappy sentiment; it’s apparently quite literally true, and the fact that we remember more details about that first kiss than about our first sexual experience speaks volumes about the nature of memory. Men and women kiss differently; that’s also true, but you might be surprised to learn why. Why is kissing important to some human societies, and unimportant-just plain foreign-to others? University of Texas research scientist and Discover magazine blogger Kirshenbaum draws on psychology, biology, history, and other disciplines in this highly engaging, highly informative book.” (David Pitt )
A wonderful new book arrived this month that I highly recommend to readers! Misha Angrist composed Here Is A Human Being: At the Dawn of Personal Genomics, not only chronicling the experience of having his genome sequenced, but also introducing many fascinating characters in this engaging narrative about the relationship between us and our DNA.
Misha is assistant professor at Duke’s Institute for Genome Sciences and Policy and I was fortunate to get to know him while working at the university. (For a sense of what Misha’s up to, check out this interview featured in the News & Observer.) As one of the first ten individuals to participate in George Church’s Personal Genome Project, his book explores the broad implications of what personal genomics means in our society while providing the firsthand account of his experience. From Amazon:
In 2007, Misha Angrist became the fourth subject in the Personal Genome Project, George Church’s ambitious plan to sequence the entire genomic catalog: every participant’s twenty thousand–plus genes and the rest of his or her 6 billion base pairs. Church hopes to better understand how genes influence our physical traits, from height and athletic ability to behavior and weight, and our medical conditions, from cancer and diabetes to obesity and male pattern baldness. Now Angrist reveals startling information about the experiment’s participants and scientists; how the experiment was, is, and will be conducted; the discoveries and potential discoveries; and the profound implications of having an unfiltered view of our hardwired selves for us and for our children.
DNA technology has already changed our health care, the food we eat, and our criminal justice system. Unlocking the secrets of our genomes opens the door not only to helping us understand why we are the way we are and potentially fixing what ails us but also to many other concerns: What exactly will happen to this information? Will it become just another marketing tool? Can it help us understand our ancestry, or will it merely reinforce old ideas of race? Can personal genomics help fix the U.S. health care system?
Here Is a Human Being explores these complicated questions while documenting Angrist’s own fascinating journey—one that tens of thousands of us will soon make.
Here Is A Human Being is will appeal to anyone interested in DNA and the future of science. The content is easy to understand for experts and laypeople alike. At times Misha takes on a serious tone while elsewhere you’ll find yourself laughing at funny anecdotes. These transitions are seamless and the narrative is thought-provoking. I really enjoyed reading this book and learned a lot along the way. You will too so pick this one up!
Sheril Kirshenbaum, Grand Central, $19.99 (272p) ISBN 978-0-446-55990-4
In the vein of Stephen Pinker’s The Language Instinct, scientist Kirshenbaum examines one of humanity’s fondest pastimes. Divided into three parts, the book covers the evolutionary and cultural history of the kiss, the chemistry of kissing, and the future of kissing. In part one, “The Hunt for Kissing’s Origins,” Kirshenbaum examines the role kissing played in the Middle Ages–a businesslike kiss was employed as a legal way to seal contracts and business agreements. Many men did not know how to read and write, so their signature X was kissed to make it legal. Part two, “Kissing in the Body,” will appeal to anyone who has ever been curious about the chemical properties of butterflies in the stomach. Kirshenbaum writes just as gracefully about prostitutes in pop culture as she does the myriad of complicated biological and chemical processes that science uses to explain osculation. Part three, “Great Expectations,” covers Kirshenbaum’s personal attempt to further investigate the kiss and leaves a long list of fascinating questions that demand further research. (Jan.)
I get a lot of science books in the mail and unfortunately, don’t have a chance to review most of them on the blog. I read the titles that interest me most and when you see something mentioned here, it’s a safe bet that I’ve really enjoyed it. And now I’d like to tell you about two fantastic new books by Andrew Bleiman and Chris Eastland:
ZooBorns: The Newest, Cutest Animals from
the World’s Zoos and Aquariums (for all ages)
ZooBorns! zoo babies from around the world (for young children)
These are hands down the cutest books ever to grace my shelf. For those who need a surge of oxytocin, it’s impossible to pick up either one without smiling ear to ear. ZooBorns partnered with the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) and Simon & Schuster to develop ZooBorns (for all ages) and ZooBorns! (for young children). Both are loaded with interesting facts and stories on featured animals and teach readers–young and old– about conservation. On top of that, a portion of the proceeds go directly to the AZA Conservation Endowment Fund. With the holidays around the corner, Zooborns will make an excellent an gift for any animal lover in your family!
With just over two months until The Science of Kissing’s debut (publication date has moved up to Jan 5), my book’s been mentioned in the brand new issue of Scientific American MIND by Ferris Jabr:
No matter how old and experienced we get, sex and romance never fail to surprise and perplex us. Three new books explore the origins of human sexuality, whether we are capable of monogamy, and why we kiss.
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In The Science of Kissing: What Our Lips Are Telling Us (Grand Central Publishing, 2011), biologist and science journalist Sheril Kirshenbaum explores all aspects of a lip lock. For instance, women usually require a kiss to feel intimate with another person, whereas men are more willing to forgo the first kiss and go straight for sex. Although scientists don’t know why we kiss, Kirshenbaum explores several possibilities, such as that kissing rekindles the intimacy we first experienced in infancy when breastfeeding.
It’s exciting as an author to see the first nod to a project that has taken years of research, experimentation, and composition. Feels surreal knowing SoK’s nearly available to share with readers! More coming soon…
(In the meantime, flip through the book’s brand new gallery website!)
