It seems I should have given the thread that I inappropriately called �puppy love� [the snappiest title that came to mind on the spur of the moment] the title �prairie vole love�:
When you meet that special person your heart flutters and the violins begin to play � but scientists believe there is more to it than that. They are experimenting with sets of twins to try to prove that our bodies "scan" potential partners for the perfect genetic match. -- London Times, 22 March 2004 Double dating: What twins can tell us about falling in love By Helen Rumbelow �ONE HUNDRED AND EIGHTY-SIX years ago Arthur Schopenhauer was at his desk in Dresden, formulating his thoughts on love � or rather, debunking the whole silly idea. Instead of romance, we are all engaged in a ruthless quest for a mate who will compensate for our flaws and so create the perfect child, the philosopher wrote. A suitor, unwittingly, �loves what he lacks�. What he regards as beautiful in another individual are those perfections which he lacks, those traits opposite of his own, guided by what�s best for the species. Schopenhauer, who was neither lucky in love nor particularly happy in life, would have been cheered by the goings-on at St Thomas� Hospital in South London on a spring Saturday�.Those inclined to soppiness may want to look away now, for this extraordinary British experiment is on the brink of proving Schopenhauer�s thesis � albeit a more sophisticated version based on our genes�� You may be familiar with the first two of the following items in the article, but prairie voles? Love is the drug:� Love is blind:� Vole play:� All is revealed at: http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,7-1044228,00.html Allen Esterson Former lecturer, Science Department Southwark College, London [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.human-nature.com/esterson/index.html http://www.butterfliesandwheels.com/articleprint.php?num=10 ------------ Sat, 20 Mar 2004 15:05:27 -0500 Author: "Allen Esterson" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Subject: Puppy love > In the course of responding to Stephen I ventured into another > illustrative example, and as it led to another question a bit off the main > point being discussed, I�m posting it separately. > > The propensity to �fall in love� is, I think most people will agree, a > genetic propensity of humans. (As it is of many other creatures � you > should see the way the ducks pair off in these parts. There are [human] > exceptions, as in the case of any *propensity*, and Sherlock Holmes > immediately comes to mind � any other suggestions?) However, an infant > dumped on a desert island and brought up by friendly chimps or wolves [so > my geographical notions are a bit askew], will not fall in love, because > there ain�t no one around to love. But� will he or she possible �fall in > love� (not simply form an attachment, as to a mother-figure) with an > individual chimp or wolf of roughly the same age that he/she meets later > in life? Me, I doubt it. > > It goes without saying that I�m assuming that the putative romantic pair > (human/chimp or human/wolf) have the requisite interests in common, such > as having the same religion. > > Allen Esterson --- You are currently subscribed to tips as: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To unsubscribe send a blank email to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
