Beware of staredowns. They are likelier to be initiated by controlling people. A study published in Psychological Science asked 40 volunteers (half men, half women) to look at 90 images of happy, angry or neutral-looking faces. When the images disappeared, the volunteers with the most controlling personalities spent more time looking where the angry faces had been. Supposedly, dominant people reflectively maintain eye contact when confronted with social aggression. This automatic preparedness for a staring contest can be traced back to the animal kingdom when a break in eye contact meant vulnerability. Maybe intimidation needs to be spelled with only 2 “eyes”.
Men’s fingers usually indicate if they’re married or single. However, the Web site Rent did a 2011 survey of single males that might show why some are still single. For example, 47% pay a mortgage, 39% rent and 14% live with family or friends. In fact, 46% of adult, single men under age 25 live rent-free. Regarding the conventional wisdom that housing costs should be about 25% of a monthly budget, 38% spent 25%-50% and 7% spent more than 50%. Finally, an impressive 87% claimed to clean their own apartment; but 5% relied on mom. Perhaps this survey is a description of “single-mindedness”.
Men’s fingers also indicate how handsome they are. That’s according to a study done at the University of Geneva. The relationship is a ratio called “2D:4D” because it compares the length of the second digit (index finger) on the right hand with the fourth digit (ring finger). It seems the more testosterone males are exposed to as fetuses, the more the fourth digit grows and the more attractive the face becomes. To test the theory 49 female college students judged pictures of 49 male college students. The males with higher 2D:4D ratios were “fingered” as more attractive.
Finally, there’s a new phenomenon in relationships – “grandpuppies”. Evolutionary biologists say the relationship between humans and dogs dates back at least 14,000 years. Dogs have gone from protector, to hunter, to companion. Because women in the 21st century are waiting longer to have children, dogs are now filling the family roles of both child and grandchild. Some grandpuppies have Facebook pages. Others have Skype visits with their grandparents. Retailers are selling t-shirts, dog bowls, note cards, mouse pads and coffee cups with grandpuppy images on them. It seems the grandparents of grandpuppies can be “dogged” in their devotion.
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