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Love special: Six ways to woo your lover
New Scientist ^ | 4/27/06 | Eleanor Case

Posted on 04/27/2006 9:04:40 AM PDT by Millee

LET YOUR BODY DO THE TALKING

We all hunt for the perfect chat-up line, but in reality, our body gives away a great deal before we open our mouth. It is estimated that when you meet a stranger, their impression of you is based 55 per cent on your appearance and body language, 38 per cent on your style of speaking and a mere 7 per cent on what you actually say.

So what can we learn from the experts? There are a number of actions that signal "I like you" to another person. Adopting an open posture (no folded arms), and mirroring another's posture help create a feeling of affinity. Most people are not conscious of being mirrored, but evaluate those who do it more favourably. And it is worth adopting stances that enhance your masculinity or femininity, such as placing hands in pockets with elbows out to enlarge the chest.

You could also indulge in a "gestural dance", synchronising your gestures and body movements with those of the object of your desire, such as taking a sip of your drinks at the same time.

EXPERIENCE FEAR TOGETHER

A dramatic setting can kick-start your love life. Meeting a stranger when physiologically aroused increases the chance of having romantic feelings towards them ...

It's all because of a strong connection between anxiety, arousal and attraction. In the "shaky bridge study" carried out by psychologists Arthur Aron and Don Dutton in the 1970s, men who met a woman on a high, rickety bridge found the encounter sexier and more romantic than those who met her on a low, stable one. A visit to the funfair works wonders too. Photos of members of the opposite sex were more attractive to people who had just got off a roller coaster, compared with those who were waiting to get on. And couples were more loved-up after watching a suspense-filled thriller than a calmer film. Why? No one is sure, but the adrenaline rush from the danger might be misattributed to the thrill of attraction. But beware: while someone attractive becomes more so in a tense setting, the unattractive appear even less appealing. SHARE A JOKE

An experience that makes you laugh creates feelings of closeness between strangers. A classic example comes from experiments carried out by US psychologists Arthur Aron and Barbara Fraley, in which strangers cooperated on playful activities such as learning dance steps, but with one partner wearing a blindfold and the other holding a drinking straw in their mouth to distort speech. Sounds stupid, but love and laughter really did go together. You can read about it in "The effect of a shared humorous experience on closeness in initial encounters" in the journal Personal Relationships (vol 11, p 61). We suggest that the blindfold/drinking straw approach is best confined to the laboratory.

GET THE SOUNDTRACK RIGHT

Psychologists at North Adams State College in Massachusetts have proved what Shakespeare suggested - that music is the food of love. Well, rock music, at least. Women evaluating photos of men rated them more attractive while listening to soft-rock music, compared with avant-garde jazz or no music at all. USE LOVE POTIONS?

Can you short-cut all the hard work of relationship-building by artificial means? People have been trying to crack this one for thousands of years. A nasal spray containing the hormone oxytocin can make people trust you - an important part of any relationship - though there's no evidence yet to suggest it can make someone fall in love. And while we wouldn't suggest you try this at home, studies on prairie voles show that injecting the hormone vasopressin into the brain makes males bond strongly to females. Illegal drugs such as cocaine or amphetamines can simulate the euphoria of falling in love by raising levels of the neurotransmitter dopamine, but dopamine levels can also be increased legally by exercising. Another neurotransmitter, phenylethylamine (PEA), is tagged the "love molecule" because it induces feelings of excitement and apprehension. PEA is found in chocolate and it, too, is linked to the feel-good effects of exercise. Overall, a swift jog could be more conducive to love than anything you might find in a bottle. GAZE INTO THEIR EYES

Any flirt knows that making eye contact is an emotionally loaded act. Now psychologists have shown just how powerful it can be. When pairs of strangers were asked to gaze into each other's eyes, it was perhaps not surprising that their feelings of closeness and attraction rocketed compared with, say, gazing at each other's hands. More surprising was that a couple in one such experiment ended up getting married. Neuroscientists have shed some light on what's going on: meeting another person's gaze lights up brain regions associated with rewards. The bottom line is that eye contact can work wonders, but make sure you get your technique right: if your gaze isn't reciprocated, you risk coming across as a stalker.


TOPICS: Chit/Chat; Society
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Love potion = merlot.
1 posted on 04/27/2006 9:04:43 AM PDT by Millee
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To: Dashing Dasher; Jersey Republican Biker Chick; najida; teenyelliott; Maximus of Texas; EX52D; ...

Woo-Woo ping!


2 posted on 04/27/2006 9:05:24 AM PDT by Millee
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To: Millee

Nothing gets a womany going quicker than Jack Daniels and a bag of pork rinds.

Come to daddy!


3 posted on 04/27/2006 9:07:58 AM PDT by socal_parrot (Pass)
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To: Millee

$$$$$$$$$$$$


4 posted on 04/27/2006 9:08:34 AM PDT by dakine
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To: socal_parrot

I usually just lick my eyebrows.


5 posted on 04/27/2006 9:09:17 AM PDT by FearlessFreep (Excuse me. But are those your legs or are you riding a chicken?)
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To: Millee
EXPERIENCE FEAR TOGETHER

A dramatic setting can kick-start your love life.

Yes, those opportunities are ripe for me... ;-)

6 posted on 04/27/2006 9:09:34 AM PDT by Allegra (5...)
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To: socal_parrot

LOL!


7 posted on 04/27/2006 9:09:48 AM PDT by conservativebabe (brrrrffffttt)
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To: socal_parrot

"Nothing gets a womany going quicker than Jack Daniels and a bag of pork rinds."

Farting and belching, too.


8 posted on 04/27/2006 9:10:28 AM PDT by tuffydoodle (Shut up voices, or I'll poke you with a Q-Tip again.)
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To: Millee

I love the way you think Millee. No wooing needed for me, other than a six pack of Bud.


9 posted on 04/27/2006 9:10:38 AM PDT by conservativebabe (brrrrffffttt)
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To: Millee

eye contact works wonders.

HEY, MY EYES ARE UP HERE, GUYS!


10 posted on 04/27/2006 9:11:11 AM PDT by gardenparty (where do you go when the stars turn blue?)
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To: gardenparty

ROTFL!!


11 posted on 04/27/2006 9:12:05 AM PDT by tuffydoodle (Shut up voices, or I'll poke you with a Q-Tip again.)
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To: FearlessFreep

lick eyebrows.

OMG.....hard tooo typo whne I'se laugghinggg so hrd!


12 posted on 04/27/2006 9:12:20 AM PDT by gardenparty (where do you go when the stars turn blue?)
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To: Allegra

Yeah...why I recall when first meeting Mr. Millee and he put that .45 in my face...I just knew he was the feller for me....Sigh......


13 posted on 04/27/2006 9:12:54 AM PDT by Millee
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To: Millee
you risk coming across as a stalker.

believe me....I'm working on it.

14 posted on 04/27/2006 9:13:38 AM PDT by wallcrawlr (http://www.bionicear.com/)
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To: gardenparty

haha... and what a nice pair they are


15 posted on 04/27/2006 9:14:45 AM PDT by wallcrawlr (http://www.bionicear.com/)
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To: gardenparty

HEY, MY EYES ARE UP HERE, GUYS!

That's why I like short women. Can look down at them. :)


16 posted on 04/27/2006 9:15:52 AM PDT by FearlessFreep (Excuse me. But are those your legs or are you riding a chicken?)
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To: wallcrawlr

"haha... and what a nice pair they are"

Oh, yeah? So what color ARE my eyes, mister?


17 posted on 04/27/2006 9:16:20 AM PDT by gardenparty (where do you go when the stars turn blue?)
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To: conservativebabe
No wooing needed for me, other than a six pack of Bud.

Ugh...Bud gives me a headache, so it would get hubby nowhere : ) But he knows I'll take a 6-pack of Busch and wildflowers over wine and roses any day.

18 posted on 04/27/2006 9:17:26 AM PDT by ravingnutter
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To: wallcrawlr
Remember what I told you, restraining orders are NOT like receiving a Hallmark card.
19 posted on 04/27/2006 9:18:06 AM PDT by Millee
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To: FearlessFreep

being 5'2" , I'll remember that!


20 posted on 04/27/2006 9:19:04 AM PDT by gardenparty (where do you go when the stars turn blue?)
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