HELEN FISHER
Humans experience love, lust, as well as attachments. How would you differentiate between the three?
I have figured out that we have evolved three basic drives for mating and reproduction: sex drive, feelings of intense romantic love, and feelings of deep attachment. Different brain systems run these three basic drives.
The sex drive is run largely by testosterone in both men and women. Romantic love, and we have proven this in brain study, is run largely by the dopamine system (dopamine is a monoamine neurotransmitter, which is also the chemical messenger, “communicating messages between nerve cells in brain and brain and the rest of the body”). The feelings of deep attachment are run by the oxytocin system (oxytocin is the hormone responsible for “key aspects of the female and male reproductive systems, including labour and delivery and lactation, as well as aspects of human behaviour”).
They have evolved for different reasons. The sex drive evolved to get people to look for partners. Romantic love enables you to focus your mating energy on just one person at a time. Feelings of deep attachment enable you to stick with this person at least long enough to have a child together and raise that child.
Denne historien er fra May 16, 2024-utgaven av Down To Earth.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent ? Logg på
Denne historien er fra May 16, 2024-utgaven av Down To Earth.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
A SPRIG TO CARE FOR
Punarnava, a perennial herb, is easy to grow and has huge health benefits
DIGGING A DISASTER
Soapstone mining near Dabti Vijaypur village has caused many residents to migrate.
REVIEW THE TREATMENT
Several faecal sludge treatment plants in Uttar Pradesh suffer from design flaws that make the treatment process both expensive and inefficient
MAKE STEEL SUSTAINABLE
As India works to double its GDP by 2030, its steel industry must balance growth with sustainability. By embracing policies like the Steel Scrap Recycling Policy 2019 and adopting green technologies, India is paving the way for a more sustainable future in steel production
Can ANRF pull off the impossible for India?
Anusandhan National Research Foundation is expected to reorient India's innovation goals but funding issues, old mindsets remain a drag
TROUBLED WOODS
Forests are a great bulwark against climate change. But this is fast changing. AKSHIT SANGOMLA travels through some of the pristine patches of the Western Ghats to explore how natural disturbances triggered by global warming now threaten the forest health
BLINDING GLOW
The science is clear: increased illumination has damaging consequences for the health of humans, animals and plants. It’s time governments introduced policies to protect the natural darkness and improved the quality of outdoor lighting.
GROUND REALITY
What happens when the soil loses the ability to grow healthy, high-yield crops on its own?
GM POLICY MUST BE FARMER CENTRIC
On July 23, the Supreme Court of India directed the Union government to develop a national policy on genetically modified (GM) crops for research, cultivation, trade and commerce through public consultation.
Vinchurni's Gandhi
A 96-year-old farmer transforms barren land into a thriving forest in drought-prone region of Satara
