A Univeristy Course in The Economics of Love and Sex

This is directly from from the Dalhousie Univeristy web site. 

Dr. Adshade is a macroeconomist working within the field of economic history and is an expert on the economics of sex and love. She writes a popular blog on the Big Think platform (Dollars and Sex)  and is a regular contributor to the Globe and Mail’s Economy Lab and to New York Magazine’s Intelligencer. She is currently working on her first book (published by Harper Collins) to be available in the fall of 2012.

You might be waiting for her on-line course.  Her blog is interesting reading and please do not overlook the Dec 16, 2010.. entry.. Why you should pay for online dating!

Happy dating

Do Men and Women Kiss Differently?

This rather intriguing headline was showing up in the MSM as part of the Valentine’s Day coverage.

It turns out that these articles were reviewing a new book, The Science Of Kissing, What Our Lips Are Telling Us by Sheril Kirshenbaum.

The book is a multidisciplinary study of kissing..  mainly kissing by humans it seems.  Humans may be unique in the animal kingdom but we are not unique because we kiss.  We do kiss a lot.. More then 90% of cultures have kissing in their affection repertoire.

As headlines go they may have got me to read the articles but they were not descriptive of the thrust of the book.  The book is engaged in the aspect of why men and women kiss rather than how they kiss.  I guess, the “why” is a more interesting question.

In an interview on heatland.time.com, the author summarizes:

““Women put a lot of weight into the act of kissing itself” says Kirshenbaum. For them, it’s “natures ultimate litmus test”  – a way to probe the potential of a future partner.  And for men?  Well, I think we all know what men want.  “

Hummm  .. did we need all that research and a book to end up in the same places as we started?

In the interest of full disclosure, I have not yet read the book but it is on order.  I’ll let you know what lies between those covers!

Take the guesswork out of age guessing

Another time honor dating practice, guessing your date’s real age, has been made obsolete by technology.   At last, a gadget that helps you determine your date’s real age.

This gadget emits a high frequency sound.  The older you are, the less likely for you to hear this high-pitched mosquito buzzing….  All things being equal, that is.

It sells for $10 and comes in black and pink.

And if you can feel a pea under your mattress, you are of royal descent.

We won’t go into details about another device from Bandia, which is design to infuriate TRS women.  It helps women understand men.  No doubt-  it comes in basic pink.

We are not making this up

The World’s Longest Married Couple

Herbert and Zelmyra Fisher have been married for 86 years.  They were married in 1924 and are 104 and 102 years old respectively.

On Valentine’s Day, the couple answered questions about love and relationships received via their Twitter page, @longestmarried.

What about that college yearbook photo?

Remember you heard it from The Right Stuff first.

According to Matthew Hertenstein, a psychology professor at DePauw University in Greencastle, Ind, the less people smiled in their college yearbook, the more likely they were to later divorce.  Or said in a postive way..  the more you smiled in your college yearbook photo, the less likely your were to get divorced.

How did he determine this?  In a research project involving 600 people, Matthew and a group of researchers coded muscle movements around the mouth and the eyes.

Actually the correlation was small but significant.  Where the researchers really struck it rich was comparing the top 10 percent of the brightest smiles with the bottom 10 percent of the weakest smiles.  The lowest 10% were five times more likely to divorce.

At The Right Stuff we found that the introduction of photos actually decreased the match rate slightly.  Perhaps our members were just looking at the wrong photos.

Before you rush out and demand the college yearbook photo on the first date, remember that plenty of non-smilers defied the odds.  That non-smiler that you are having coffee with for the first time could be perfect for you.

Saving the Random Act of Kindness

In case you missed it, author  Gretchen Rubin has published the results of her year of trying out every conceivable thing that is alleged to make one happy.

One of the victims of her research was the “random act of kindness”.   It turns out the random acts of kindness makes the giver happier but the recipient … well.. not so much.  The reason?  People who receive random acts of kindness feel suspicious!

But wait. Hasn’t it been documented that those who as volunteer for social help organizations get as much or more out of the activity than the intended beneficiary?  This is not new.

The Right Stuff likes random acts of kindness.  To save it from extinction, we suggest saying… “there are no strings attached”.  On a first date if you feel the urge to engage in a random act of kindness, you might have to explain yourself to avoid suspicion

Northwestern Faculty Research Speed-dating

You might know that we are offering to organize  speed-dating events for alumni groups.  We have developed a speed-dating  web site for the TRS schools to use.

Meanwhile some researches have started using speed-dating events to test dating behavior.

Women May Not Be So Picky After All About Choosing a Mate*

EVANSTON, Ill. — Men and women may not be from two different planets after all when it comes to choosiness in mate selection, according to new research from Northwestern university

When women were assigned to the traditionally male role of approaching potential romantic partners, they were not any pickier than men in choosing that special someone to date, according to the speed dating study.

Intriguing isn’t it?   To learn more, stay tuned or ask us to organize a speed-dating event for your group.  We will tell you the rest of the story!

Cheers

Dawne

*Article by Pat Vaughan Tremmel

Dating in The New Economy- A Male Perspective

Dawne-

As you seem to be getting responses only from women, I feel it my duty to represent my gender, if not to speak for all us men.

A few observations:

Re-entering the dating “scene” after divorce, I found the practice of the man paying to be much more expected now than say, 20+ years ago.  I feel that this is somewhat of a generational shift in attitudes, with the tail-end baby boomers more inclined to split the bill, while the Gen-X[YZ] expecting the man to pay.  I understand that millennials don’t date so the issue is so far moot, but admittedly this is from second-hand information.

I urge everyone to heed your advise and make a first date short and inexpensive, so it doesn’t really matter who pays.

There is a corresponding practice for the woman to offer to split the bill, with both parties expecting the man to refuse and to pay the bill.  The offer is actually appreciated, particularly when it is apparent that the woman makes at least as much as the man.

Being asked on a date by a woman who follows the one-who-asked rule can be a lot of fun.

While almost everyone will say that they are more interested in the intelligence and character of their date than on how much money they make, that doesn’t mean that someone’s wealth is not a consideration in deciding who to date.  However, those who are impressed by how much one party, presumably the man, pays for a date are probably not on this website anyway.

Those were my two cents, which in this economy represents a significant portion of my income.

Contributing Male Member’s Profile:

Unassuming, artistic, Asian-american, architect.  Enjoys good food and wine, skiing, cycling, art, architecture and culture, children and dogs. Boston-born, lived in Europe, settled in MA, loves VT.  Seeks someone graceful in many dimensions.  Non religious.  BOSTON AREA. 48 yo.

Well gentlemen  or ladies.  What do you think?

A Good Start — But Only a Start

Tell us about your favorite inexpensive date..  We have many  suggestions  for New York city but every city has rich opportunities to date inexpensively…

We have more to post but since they are New York based, we will wait to hear from other parts of the country…

More Dating Ideas for New York

The museums here have a free day for admittance. The Jewish Museum has free Saturdays and the MOMA has free Wednesdays. That’s a lovely place to go on dates.

Also one could take advantage of the parks here in NYC. Riverside Park has a promenade and pier where they show free movies out on the pier in the evening on a very large movies screen. They supply the chairs too!

Meet for a picnic in Central Park, bringing items from home rather than a pricey catered picnic, with a bottle of wine 2 can eat as cheaply as one. Walk the High Line, walk anywhere, New York is so beautiful to walk in, explore the rivers and all the parks along them.