The Science of Love 恋爱中的科学
- 2004.03.27
- 发表：视听英语
- 摘自：《视听英语》
When it comes to love it seems we are at the mercy of our biochemistry. Flushed cheeks, a racing heartbeat and clammy hands are some of the outward signs of being in love. But inside the body there are definite signs that Cupid has fired his arrow.
恋爱时我们似乎被自己体内的生物化学反应所控制。脸颊绯红、心跳加快、手心出汗等都是人们坠入爱河时的一些外部特征。然而，体内也会有一些迹象表明爱神已向你射出了他的箭。
The Science of Flirting 相互吸引的科学
1. Ditch the chat up lines 交谈不落俗套
It can take between 90 seconds and 4 minutes to decide if we fancy someone. But this has little to do with your smooth-talking. As far as attraction goes, here's how we get the message:
只需1分半到4分钟的交谈就能决定我们能否吸引对方，但这与你流利的口才无关。我们从以下几个方面衡量对方的魅力：
55% is through body language 55%通过体语
38% is the tone and speed of our voice 38%通过声调和语速
Only 7% is through what we say 只有7%是通过所说的内容
2. Stare into each other's eyes 凝视对方
When we are aroused and interested in what we are looking at， our pupils dilate. In medieval Italy, women put belladonna into their eyes to make them look bigger. In fact, “bella donna” means “beautiful lady”. However, this is not recommended, as belladonna is a kind of poison!
当我们被眼前的东西所吸引时，我们的瞳孔会扩大。在中世纪的意大利，女士们常把颠茄（belladonna）滴入眼睛以使眼睛看起来更大。事实上 "bella donna" 也正是“美女”的意思。但是由于颠茄实际上是一种毒药，因此，这种方法并不可取。
What Makes You Fancy Someone? 是什么让你楚楚动人？
1. Perfect symmetry 完美的对称感
It is thought that asymmetrical features are a sign of underlying genetic problems. Numerous studies in humans have shown that men in particular go for women with symmetrical faces. The preference in women for symmetry is not quite so pronounced. Women are looking for a man's ability to offer food and protection.
有人认为，五官不对称说明基因有缺陷。大量的研究发现男人更欣赏五官匀称的女人；而女人并不十分在意男人的这一特征。女人注重的是男人养家糊口和保护女人的能力。
2. The hourglass figure “沙漏”型身材
Studies have shown that men prefer women with a waist to hip ratio of 0.7. You can calculate your own using this formula:
研究发现男人更喜欢腰围与臀围比例为0.7的女人。你可以用以下这个公式去检测自己的身材指数：
Waist Measurement / Hip Measurement = Ratio.
腰围÷臀围=身材指数
This seems to apply whatever the woman's overall weight. A group of researchers even compared this ratio with the average ratio of Miss America winners over the years. It was exactly the same.
这个公式似乎适用于各种体重的女士。一组研究人员甚至将该指数与历年美国小姐的平均值作比较，结果两者完全相同。
Mummy's boys and Daddy's girls? 恋母情结和恋父情结？
The latest studies indicate that what people really, really want is a mate that looks like their parents. Women are after a man who is like their father and men want to be able to see their own mother in the woman of their dreams.
最新的研究发现人们想要寻找的伴侣其实是长相酷似父母的人。女人寻找父亲式的“白马王子”；同样，男人则想在梦中情人身上找到母亲的影子。
Will it last? 爱能天长地久吗？
Unfortunately there's no way of telling for certain if a relationship will last. But there might be some clues in your and your partner's family! In studies of behavioral genetics it has been shown that a person's tendency to divorce is written in their genes.
遗憾的是，没有任何方法可以预测你与爱人的关系能否天长地久。但这可以从你们双方的家庭中找到线索。行为遗传学的研究表明，在基因中可以找到人们的离婚倾向。
Perhaps the best indication as to whether your love will last come from statistical studies. This is based on how you met and when, how you resolve conflict and how different your expectations and the reality are.
也许统计研究最能表明你们的爱情是否能天长地久。这是对你们相会的方式、相会的时间、解决冲突的方式以及你们的期望值与现实的差距等进行分析后得出的。
人们最爱在电话中撒谎
一项前所未有的对人们在不同通信媒体中所表现的诚信度的研究发现，人们在电话中晕容易撒谎。
美国康奈尔大学的杰夫·汉考克是这项研究的开展者。他与30位学生每星期进行一次对话。在对话中，学生们将告诉他在这一星期中持续时间在10分钟以上的所有对话的次数，不管是通过电话、电子邮件、短消息或者面对面交谈的方式，并且向他坦诚在哪些对话中撒谎了。
于是，汉考克分别得出了学生们发电子邮件、发短消息、面对面交谈或者打电话时的撒谎次数，发现他们通过电子邮件撒谎的比例为14%，发短消息时撒谎的比例为21%，面对面交谈时撒谎的比例为27%，而在电话中撒谎的比例高达37%。
人们在面对面交谈时撒谎的比例比较高，这点并没有出乎人们的意料，因为这是人们运用最熟练的通信方式。汉考克指出，影响人们是否撒谎的关键因素包括：对话的内容是否被录音、交谈的内容是否被保存以及交流是否实时进行的等。当人们担心日后需要为所说的话做出解释时，人们一般不大愿意撒谎。这就是人们在电子邮件中比在电话中撒谎比例要低的原因。在实时的对话中，人们比较容易撒谎，比如在短消息或电话中，因为没有思考的时间。撒谎往往是人们对待不情之请的本能反应。比如，当别人间你：“我这件衣服好看吗?”你往往会说违心的话。
汉考克希望他的工作能够帮助公司里的员工们找到更好的适合自己工作性质的通信方式。比如，对于做销售的工作人员而言，电话交谈是最好的方式，但是工作人员需要尽力让对方说出真话。
作者：朱隼
摘自：《科学画报》
发表：武汉心理咨询网