By Juliette Tang
A new study conducted by researchers at Oxford University and the University College of London argues that, should a woman want to get pregnant, her chances are better with man who’s unattractive.
The logic goes as follows: attractive males have more sex. Because attractive guys have more partners, they have to allocate their sperm carefully from partner to partner, in order to maximize chances of knocking up more women. Whereas because unattractive guys don’t have as many partners, they can afford to blow it all, if you will, on the few they have.
What exactly constitutes “attractive” versus “unattractive,” the study does not say. However, the study does draw an entertaining comparison between human beings and “animals such as the domestic fowl, and fish such as the Arctic charr.” It concludes by admitting, “The model should also be expanded to include the effects of short-term sperm depletion, which is known to affect ejaculate content” (i.e. the study needs to consider the case of frequent masturbators). Relevant? You decide.
Sex therapist Ian Kerner revisits the 1974 Shaky Bridge Study, which reveals that, when exposed to larger amounts of adrenaline and stress, people are more prone to sexual attraction and romantic attachment.
Psychologists Arthur Aron and Donald Dutton used two bridges, a solid one that rose 10 feet over sea level, and this one, the Capilano Canyon Suspension Bridge which is 5 feet wide, 450 feet long, and sways 250 feet above the river below, as the setting for their research. For the first part of the study, they had an attractive woman stand at the middle of the sturdy bridge, asking random passerbys to fill out a short psychology survey. She then gave the men her phone number, asking them to call if they were interested in finding results. The next day, she repeated the routine, on the more dangerous suspension bridge.