On 9/3/07, Charles Haynes <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > If you believe beauty is a social and cultural construct then > obviously this theory is baloney. > > If you believe there is some objective standard for human > attractiveness then this theory is testable. One study I've read says > that people find "average" faces more attractive - that if you take a > sample set and produce an image that is the "average" of the faces, > that it will be considered more attractive than a specific face.
I remember reading about a study that showed that faces and bodies with a high degree of symmetry were consistently rated more attractive than those that were not. This was cited in the context that the majority of features that are considered beautiful (including symmetry) are usually indications of the underlying health of the individual. Health, of course, is an important criteria in selecting a mate. > If this theory is true, and if hybridization generally produces > features that are somewhere between the parent populations, then > indeed hybrids would be expected to be more attractive. Perhaps there is a factor that makes hybrids healthier than average. I'm sure good health is an important factor towards looks and intelligence. > -- Charles (a mongrel) Proves my point, doesn't it? :) -- b
