Escalation of osculation. Time and oranges.

• Apparently it's not a given that kissing is important in courtship & mating, though (at least in the particular studies reported here) not as much for men. The consistently delightful VS Ramachandran suggests that kissing stimulates mirror neurons that, ostensibly, "promote empathy and reduce inhibitions". Obviously (to me, unfortunately not always to those I have smooched), empathy and reduced inhibitions is important for certain types of good, ahem, interpersonal relating. Why some people don't like kissing, or are just plain icky at it, seems like a societal issue, or at least one to which one should apply a good deal of introspection (and more practice with a vocal collaborator). Such folk are not going to last long in my dating pool (though, unfortunately, even the rare seemingly divinely endowed kissers have not yet found a way to stay afloat). Though it does make me wonder about the kissing plebian's state of mind in regard to attachment. It does not seem unreasonable to assert that someone with a dismissive state of mind would not want to get all mooshy and gooey (and empathic and uninhibited) with the kissing and would prefer to go straight to copulating. And then drive off onto the lonely highway. Likewise, someone with a preoccupied state of mind might want to kiss and kiss and kiss until repetitive lip injury occurs. Perhaps there's a study there!


• On an entirely unrelated note (though good kissing and pondering this topic are not so dissimilar, at least on some level), here's a delightful, interactive article on time space, travel, using oranges and other household items as educational props. Perhaps good date night material, before the smooching. Or a Family Home Evening activity!

Econometrics of sex & 'happiness'

...the economists compared the levels of happiness produced by a vigorous sex life with other activities whose economic values had been calculated in prior research, allowing them to impute, in dollars, how much happiness sex was worth. They also estimated that increasing the frequency of sexual intercourse from once a month to at least once a week provided as much happiness as putting $50,000 in the bank.

New York Times Week in Review: Sex May Be Happiness, But Wealth Isn't Sexiness