tag:theconversation.com,2011:/us/topics/kissing-13604/articlesKissing – The Conversation2023-05-19T14:52:43Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2057622023-05-19T14:52:43Z2023-05-19T14:52:43ZEarliest evidence of kissing pushed back 1,000 years<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/526832/original/file-20230517-22717-1nqed9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=10%2C0%2C6985%2C4688&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Kissing may seem natural, but it remains unclear whether it's a universal human act, or a cultural one.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/your-kisses-make-me-melt-shot-2148946681">PeopleImages.com - Yuri A / Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Lip kissing is an act that’s so natural and common in many present-day societies it is easily taken for granted. But it’s not actually clear whether people have always been kissing, or whether its origins lie in the relatively recent past. </p>
<p>It turns out that the history and causes for kissing are more complex than anticipated. In an article <a href="https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adf0512">published in the journal Science</a>, we analysed substantial amounts of overlooked evidence that challenge current beliefs that <a href="https://books.google.dk/books?hl=da&lr=&id=rzKwAgAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PP1&dq=the+history+of+the+kiss+&ots=GyvoQAYztH&sig=L04WOqKuO1E4p3T1XdcAcIxytog&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=the%20history%20of%20the%20kiss&f=false">the first record of romantic-sexual kissing</a> is from India around 1500BC.</p>
<p>Instead, lip kissing is documented in ancient Mesopotamia – present-day Iraq and Syria – from at least 2500BC onwards. This basically means that the recorded history of romantic-sexual kissing is at least 1,000 years older than the previous earliest known date.</p>
<h2>Why do we kiss?</h2>
<p><a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10508-013-0190-1">Evolutionary anthropologists</a> have suggested that lip kissing evolved to evaluate a potential mate’s suitability, through chemical cues communicated in saliva or breath. Other proposed purposes for kissing include bringing about feelings of attachment and facilitating sexual arousal.</p>
<p>Lip kissing is also seen in our closest living relatives, chimpanzees and bonobos. This suggests that the behaviour could be much older than our current earliest evidence in humans.</p>
<p>People in ancient Mesopotamia may have invented writing for the first time, though it was roughly contemporary with its invention in ancient Egypt as well. The earliest Mesopotamian writing is from around 3200BC, from the city of Uruk, now in southern Iraq. </p>
<p>The script is called cuneiform, and it was inscribed on moist clay tablets with reeds cut into a little triangular shape. Originally, the script was used to write Sumerian, a language with no known relationship with any other. Later, it was adapted to write Akkadian, an ancient Semitic language. </p>
<p>Though the earliest texts we find are mainly linked to administrative practices, and largely reflect the mechanics of bureaucracy, people developed this mode of writing in subsequent centuries to include other genres of texts. </p>
<p>In the first half of the third millennium BC, myths and incantations materialise in these texts, and even later, private documents about ordinary people. Some of the earliest sources mentioning the lip kiss can be found in mythological texts concerning acts by the gods that date to around 2500BC. </p>
<h2>Early records</h2>
<p>In one of these earliest instances, described on the so-called Barton Cylinder, a Mesopotamian clay artifact inscribed with cuneiform, two deities are said to have <a href="https://pf.ku.dk/?pure=en%2Fpublications%2Fthe-barton-cylinder(70394cd0-74ce-11db-bee9-02004c4f4f50)%2Fexport.html">intercourse and kiss</a>:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>with the goddess Ninhursag, he had intercourse. He kissed her. The semen of seven twins he impregnated into her womb.</p>
</blockquote>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Cuneiform text on the Barton Cylinder." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/527176/original/file-20230519-29-pctspw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/527176/original/file-20230519-29-pctspw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=963&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527176/original/file-20230519-29-pctspw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=963&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527176/original/file-20230519-29-pctspw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=963&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527176/original/file-20230519-29-pctspw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1210&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527176/original/file-20230519-29-pctspw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1210&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527176/original/file-20230519-29-pctspw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1210&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The text on the Barton Cylinder describes romantic kissing as far back as 2,500BC.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Aage Westerholtz</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Later sources, such as proverbs, an erotic dialogue between a man and a woman, and a legal text, form the general impression that kissing in relation to sex, family and friendship was likely an ordinary part of everyday life in central parts of the ancient Middle East from the late third millennium BC onwards.</p>
<p>Still, it seems that romantic-sexual kissing in the open street may have been frowned upon, and it’s possible that it was preferably practised between married couples. Society probably had a number of such social norms regarding ideal behaviour. But the fact that such norms existed point to a widespread practice.</p>
<h2>Single point of origin?</h2>
<p>Evidence suggests that the lip kiss was practised at least in the ancient Middle East and India. This contrasts with previous observations about humanity’s earliest history of kissing. A manuscript from India dated to about 1500BC, for example, has has previously been used to propose that the kiss was brought as a cultural practice westward from there. The older evidence from Mesopotamia suggests we can dismiss that scenario.</p>
<p>Considering the wide geographical distribution of the romantic-sexual kiss in ancient times, <a href="https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adf0512">we believe</a> that the kiss had multiple origins. And even if one were to search for a single point from where the kiss originated, one would have to find it millennia ago in prehistoric times.</p>
<p><a href="https://anthrosource.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/aman.12286#aman12286">A recent anthropological study</a> has shown that the romantic-sexual kiss is not universal. However, <a href="https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adf0512">there is ancient written documentation</a> suggesting a tendency for its practice in societies with complex social hierarchies.</p>
<p>This raises a question over how widely used the sexual kiss was in the ancient world, especially in societies that cannot be traced because they did not use writing. Although some societies may not have practised the romantic-sexual kiss, we argue it must have been known in most ancient cultures, for example due to cultural contacts. </p>
<p>But if future research should show that lip kissing cannot be considered near-universal in the ancient world, it will be interesting to consider the reasons why this was not a common practice. Surprisingly, the history and culture of kissing is a complex tale with many aspects yet to be revealed.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/205762/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Sophie Lund Rasmussen has received funding from the Edubba Foundation and the Carlsberg Foundation.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Troels Pank Arbøll has received funding from the Edubba Foundation and the Carlsberg Foundation.</span></em></p>Researchers examined whether kissing is an innate human activity or whether its origins are relatively recent.Sophie Lund Rasmussen, Postdoctoral fellow, University of OxfordTroels Pank Arbøll, Assistant Professor in Assyriology, University of CopenhagenLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1573222021-04-04T20:35:49Z2021-04-04T20:35:49ZCurious Kids: why do people like to kiss? Do other animals kiss?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/393080/original/file-20210401-17-u9h0fe.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=35%2C0%2C4709%2C3165&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><blockquote>
<p>Why do people like to kiss? Do other animals kiss? Why are kisses so gross? — Gracie, age 5.</p>
</blockquote>
<p><a href="https://theconversation.com/au/topics/curious-kids-36782"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/291898/original/file-20190911-190031-enlxbk.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=90&fit=crop&dpr=1" width="100%"></a></p>
<p>Gracie, you ask a question that puzzled me too when I was about your age. Why would two people want to smoosh their mouths together? </p>
<p>And I don’t just mean: “why does Aunty <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-you-shouldnt-force-the-kids-to-hug-granny-at-christmas-108059">insist</a> on kissing me to say hello when we visit for Easter lunch?” </p>
<p>I mean teenagers and adult couples — in real life and on TV — all of whom seemed to love long, sloppy kisses. That must be especially confusing for you now, after everything we’ve been told about social distancing because of the coronavirus. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/392707/original/file-20210331-13-2x8m9o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/392707/original/file-20210331-13-2x8m9o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/392707/original/file-20210331-13-2x8m9o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/392707/original/file-20210331-13-2x8m9o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/392707/original/file-20210331-13-2x8m9o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/392707/original/file-20210331-13-2x8m9o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/392707/original/file-20210331-13-2x8m9o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/392707/original/file-20210331-13-2x8m9o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Romance was definitely different during the pandemic.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>For people who enjoy kissing, however, the answer is simple: “it feels good”. And they’re not lying, <a href="https://www.hachette.com.au/sheril-kirshenbaum/the-science-of-kissing-what-our-lips-are-telling-us">it often does</a>. But that’s not a very good answer to your question. </p>
<p>If you have a younger sister or brother, you will know what’s coming next: “but <em>why</em> does kissing feel good?”</p>
<p>Well, that’s a question even scientists have found tricky to answer. And I’m not sure the answers so far are very satisfying. But let’s see what you think.</p>
<h2>Kissing brings people together</h2>
<p>Kissing seems to be important when people are <a href="https://www.hachette.com.au/sheril-kirshenbaum/the-science-of-kissing-what-our-lips-are-telling-us">first attracted to one another</a>, like when they’ve got a crush on each other. To get close enough to kiss someone, you have to trust that person a lot and let them into your personal space.</p>
<p>If you don’t like somebody enough to kiss them, that’s a sign to them that they should look somewhere else for a girlfriend or boyfriend. </p>
<p>And, kissing aside, sometimes it might feel wrong just to touch another person’s skin. Or you may not like how they smell.</p>
<p>These are examples of our bodies telling us what we can’t put into words. In this case, they’re telling us we aren’t a good match with that person. </p>
<p>As adults, kissing can help us decide if another person is the right person to start a family with (if this is something both people want). Chances are if two people don’t enjoy kissing, they aren’t attracted enough to stay together long enough to raise a child.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/curious-kids-how-did-the-first-person-evolve-142735">Curious Kids: how did the first person evolve?</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>If both people <em>do</em> like and trust each other enough to kiss, they’ll probably kiss quite often. The good shared feelings they get from this makes them like and trust each other even more, and eventually that might lead to starting a family. </p>
<p>Some research has shown that couples <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/14681994.2020.1717460">benefit from kissing</a> even after they’ve been together for many years. In one study, couples who agreed to kiss each other <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/10570310902856071#.Umcv_GTwI0M">more often</a> were happier with each another and with their lives than couples who carried on as normal.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/392706/original/file-20210331-13-neul5j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Two older men touch foreheads" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/392706/original/file-20210331-13-neul5j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/392706/original/file-20210331-13-neul5j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/392706/original/file-20210331-13-neul5j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/392706/original/file-20210331-13-neul5j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/392706/original/file-20210331-13-neul5j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/392706/original/file-20210331-13-neul5j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/392706/original/file-20210331-13-neul5j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Kissing is one way people can build trust and closeness, which helps them stay together for a long time.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Back to those germs</h2>
<p>When I was in primary school, my friends referred to kissing as “swapping germs”. It’s true that kissing a person exposes you to their germs. But that might actually help explain why we do it. </p>
<p>If you’re going to spend time in a relationship, you’re going to be exposed to another person’s germs. So if we aren’t prepared to kiss somebody because they might make us sick, we surely won’t want to live with them. </p>
<p>And if we do decide to kiss someone we like, the nice feelings we get <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0044111">help us worry less</a> about catching their germs.</p>
<h2>Not everybody kisses</h2>
<p>Other animals in nature appear to kiss sometimes. Common and bonobo chimpanzees give each other big wet kisses quite often, which <a href="https://books.google.com.au/books?hl=en&lr=&id=d7AwDwAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PP9&ots=MocYbXBYLl&sig=l4JnSVo3-mmEj1tm-CZqaSUr2dk&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q&f=false">look like human romantic kissing</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/392708/original/file-20210331-19-1u0ib6h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Chimpanzees kiss in a tree" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/392708/original/file-20210331-19-1u0ib6h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/392708/original/file-20210331-19-1u0ib6h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/392708/original/file-20210331-19-1u0ib6h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/392708/original/file-20210331-19-1u0ib6h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/392708/original/file-20210331-19-1u0ib6h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/392708/original/file-20210331-19-1u0ib6h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/392708/original/file-20210331-19-1u0ib6h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Aww, isn’t that cute?</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>But, surprisingly, kissing isn’t something all humans do. Nearly everywhere in the world, there is some kind of loving kiss between <a href="https://books.google.com.au/books?hl=en&lr=&id=mjwrDwAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PP1&ots=q5HdXp-3Ku&sig=cdkTOiLLALhJgapaQnl6zdEzpw4&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q&f=false">parents and children</a>. This is not “romantic”. And not all people kiss romantically.</p>
<p>One big scientific study looked at 168 different groups of people, from small communities that gather and hunt their own food, to bigger and busier cities. These experts found romantic kissing was common in <a href="https://anthrosource.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/aman.12286#aman12286">less than half (46%)</a> of the groups.</p>
<p>People from non-kissing cultures who live in sub-Saharan Africa, New Guinea, or the Amazon rainforest find it either funny or <a href="https://anthrosource.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/aman.12286?saml_referrer">disgusting</a> when shown photos of kissing. Then again, they have other ways of touching one another that probably help them build trust and keeps them feeling close.</p>
<p>Romantic kissing is more common in big, <a href="https://anthrosource.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/aman.12286?saml_referrer">complex places</a> where there are many different people living many <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-019-43267-7">different lives</a>.</p>
<p>Being able to find and keep a partner is less simple in these settings, which may be why kissing becomes an important part of trying to find a romantic partner. </p>
<p>There are plenty of mysteries wrapped up in a romantic kiss, both for scientists to unravel and for the people doing the kissing to find out. So, if it sounds like I don’t know the exact answer — that’s why.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/157322/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Rob Brooks receives funding from the Australian Research Council for work unrelated to this article.</span></em></p>If both people like and trust each other enough to kiss, the good shared feelings they get makes them more likely to stay together.Rob Brooks, Scientia Professor of Evolutionary Ecology; Academic Lead of UNSW's Grand Challenges Program, UNSW SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1388992020-05-28T12:14:47Z2020-05-28T12:14:47ZDating over Zoom? Don’t be surprised if those online sparks fizzle in person<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/337725/original/file-20200526-106811-1hzxbel.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=29%2C14%2C4865%2C3647&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Let's not get ahead of ourselves...</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/young-woman-on-the-internet-with-marry-me-sign-royalty-free-image/143422027?adppopup=true">Peter Dazeley/The Image Bank via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>For those dipping their toes into the dating pool during stay-at-home orders, it’s been like swimming in a version of Netflix’s reality series “<a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt11704040/">Love is Blind</a>.” </p>
<p>In the show, contestants must get engaged before ever actually meeting one another in person. And while a lockdown engagement might be a bit extreme, it’s entirely possible that two people have grown to really like one another over the previous weeks and months. Maybe it started with a match on a dating app, followed by flirting over text. Then came regularly scheduled <a href="https://lifehacker.com/how-to-have-a-successful-zoom-date-1842885540">Zoom dates</a>. Perhaps they’ve even started envisioning a future together. </p>
<p>Now, as states start to ease restrictions, some may have broached taking the next step: an in-person rendezvous.</p>
<p>What are the chances that their online connection will lead to true love?</p>
<p>In my book, “<a href="https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_Science_of_Kissing/SQhknRXlyvkC?hl=en&gbpv=0">The Science of Kissing</a>,” I describe how compatibility requires engaging all of our senses. And absent the touch, taste and smell of a potential partner, people dating online during quarantine have essentially been flying blind.</p>
<h2>Muzzled neurotransmitters</h2>
<p>Human attraction involves the influence of cues that evolved over millions of years.</p>
<p>On a traditional date in a restaurant or move theater, we actively gather details about someone by walking side by side, holding hands, hugging and – if things get far enough – kissing. These experiences send neural impulses between the brain and body, stimulating tiny chemical messengers that affect how we feel. When two people are a good match, hormones and neurotransmitters bring about the sensations we might describe as being on a natural high or experiencing the <a href="https://theconversation.com/i-love-you-and-thats-not-the-dopamine-talking-5217">exhilaration of butterflies</a>. Finding love isn’t rocket science – it’s anatomy, endocrinology and real chemistry.</p>
<p>One of the most important neurotransmitters involved in influencing our emotions is dopamine, responsible for craving and desire. This natural drug can be promoted through physical intimacy and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/cne.20772">leads to the addictive nature of a new relationship</a>. Of course, dopamine is just one player in a chemical symphony that motivates behavior. Intimate encounters also promote the release of <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psyneuen.2011.12.021">oxytocin</a>, which creates a sense of attachment and affection, and epinephrine, which boosts our heart rate and reduces stress. There’s also a decrease in serotonin, which can lead to obsessive thoughts and feelings about the other person. </p>
<p>In fact, <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/psychological-medicine/article/alteration-of-the-platelet-serotonin-transporter-in-romantic-love/9599BA293019DFA6D05B315803B6D2A7">one study showed</a> that people who report that they’ve just “fallen in love” have levels of serotonin similar to patients suffering from obsessive-compulsive disorder. This chemical cocktail can even lead to trouble sleeping or a loss of appetite – symptoms people often attribute to meeting “the one.”</p>
<p>Our noses also play a powerful role in who we fall for. The famous “<a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rspb.1995.0087">sweaty t-shirt experiment</a>” reported that a man’s natural scent may influence how women choose a partner. The women in the study nearly always expressed a preference for the odor of men who differed genetically from them in immune response to disease. Scientists theorize that selecting someone with genetic diversity in this region, called the <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK27156/">major histocompatibility complex</a>, could be important for producing children with flexible and versatile immune systems.</p>
<h2>A kiss can make or break it</h2>
<p>While a man’s natural scent may not be something women consciously notice early on in a heterosexual relationship, getting up close and personal can serve as a kind of litmus test for a couple. A kiss puts two people nose to cheek, offering a reliable sample of smell and taste unrivaled by most other courtship rituals. Perhaps that’s one reason a <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/147470490700500310">2007 University of Albany study</a> reported that 59% of men and 66% of women have broken off a budding romance because of a bad first kiss.</p>
<p>Complicating matters, factors that typically grab our attention in person are less obvious to recognize in a witty profile or photo. <a href="https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/c9eb/6443b007a655105189c2decd6d598f5bbe2d.pdf">Studies of online dating behavior</a> reveal superficial features are correlated with the level of interest an individual receives. For example, short-haired women do not tend to get as much attention from men as those with long, straight hair, while men who report a height of six-foot-three or six-foot-four fare better than their peers at interacting with women. The initial focus on appearance promotes pairing based on characteristics that aren’t significant in lasting relationships, compared with more important factors for long-term compatibility, like <a href="https://neuro.hms.harvard.edu/harvard-mahoney-neuroscience-institute/brain-newsletter/and-brain/love-and-brain">intimacy</a> and shared experiences.</p>
<p>Still, at a time when many of us are feeling more isolated than ever, online dating does offer some benefits. Quarantine has encouraged men and women to take additional time to learn about each other prior to meeting, sparing the anxiety of <a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/fulfillment-any-age/201208/take-it-slow-if-you-want-your-relationship-last">rushed physical intimacy</a>. </p>
<p>For some couples, a real-world date will kindle the spark that began online. Many others will realize they’re better suited as friends.</p>
<p>[<em>You need to understand the coronavirus pandemic, and we can help.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=upper-coronavirus-help">Read The Conversation’s newsletter</a>.]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/138899/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Sheril Kirshenbaum is affiliated with Science Debate.</span></em></p>It doesn’t matter how smooth your conversations have been. Absent the touch, taste and smell of a potential partner, you’re essentially flying blind.Sheril Kirshenbaum, Associate Research Scientist, Michigan State UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1249172019-10-22T17:56:31Z2019-10-22T17:56:31ZWhich cheek and how many? In France and beyond, a kiss isn’t just a kiss<p>In the English-speaking world, friends and family generally greet each other with a wave, handshake or hug, depending on their degree of intimacy. In France and other countries, however, the kiss is more common – not on the lips, but a symmetrical brush of the cheeks. </p>
<p>The image is well known in world culture and is a part of everyday life in much of Europe, but the ritual can seem impenetrable to the uninitiated. Would you kiss someone the same way in Marseilles as in Madrid? Which cheek should you present first? And how many kisses? </p>
<p>For my upcoming book, <a href="https://www.armand-colin.com/parlez-vous-les-francais-atlas-des-expressions-de-nos-regions-9782200623401">“Do You Speak the French Language(s)?”</a>, I collected information about how French is spoken via an <a href="https://francaisdenosregions.com/2015/05/18/quel-francais-regional-parlez-vous">online system</a>. It allowed me to identify the prevalence and range of a number of regional expressions, including the classic <a href="https://theconversation.com/pain-au-chocolat-vs-chocolatine-fight-85923">“pain au chocolat” versus “chocolatine” debate</a>: In English, one simply says “chocolate croissant,” but the question is trickier in France. There’s also the vexing question of how the French refer to a <a href="https://www.huffingtonpost.fr/2017/10/18/crayons-a-papier-ou-crayons-de-papier-la-carte-du-francais-de-nos-regions-qui-fait-hurler_a_23247359">pencil</a>, not as simple as you’d think.</p>
<p>To better understand the question of how one greets a friend or family member with a kiss in Europe, I decided to map it. </p>
<h2>Greeting with a kiss isn’t just a ‘French thing’</h2>
<p>First things first, while many Anglo-Saxons believe that kissing as a greeting is unique to France, the practice is common in a wide range of European and Latin countries, as well as Russia and <a href="https://www.cntraveler.com/story/a-guide-to-kissing-etiquette-around-the-world">certain Arabic and sub-Saharan nations</a>. </p>
<p>Its origin is unknown, though there are many theories. Is it a ritualized form of ancestral behavior, like sniffing each other for recognition, or is it an emotional one arising from childhood? There’s no consensus among historians, anthropologists and other experts of human behavior. The ritual appears to date back to antiquity and has known highs and lows throughout modern human history. Sometimes it was encouraged, other times forbidden.</p>
<p>The question becomes even more complex when one tries to understand <a href="https://www.lexpress.fr/informations/l-art-de-la-bise_636138.html">contextual factors</a>. There’s the event itself (saying hello, goodbye, wishing someone a happy new year, etc.), and then there’s the relationship between the people involved (it was long reserved for <a href="https://www.lci.fr/societe/faire-la-bise-interdite-cette-tradition-francaise-qui-ne-plait-pas-a-tout-le-monde-1502800.html">family members</a> and those of the same gender). <a href="http://www.leparisien.fr/week-end/la-bise-une-affaire-d-hommes-25-03-2013-2669525.php">Kissing between men</a> was once stigmatized, yet is common in certain contexts and <a href="http://factsanddetails.com/russia/People_and_Life/sub9_2c/entry-5010.html">some Slavic cultures</a>.</p>
<p>For the past 15 years or so, this ritual has been a regular subject of online debate. Some of the discussions are about how many kisses one should give. In France, the question first cropped up in 2003 with the appearance of the website <a href="http://combiendebises.free.fr/">Combiendebises</a> (“Howmanykisses”). The greeting also inspired a popular video from British stand-up comedian Paul Taylor, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T-VWbV6TJxU">“La bise.”</a></p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/T-VWbV6TJxU?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">“La bise” (Paul Taylor, 2016).</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>How many kisses?</h2>
<p>To better understand the question, from 2016 to 2019 we conducted a series of <a href="https://francaisdenosregions.com/2015/05/18/quel-francais-regional-parlez-vous">online surveys</a>. Our initial map was based on answers from more than 18,600 respondents who said they had spent the bulk of their youth in Belgium, France or Switzerland. </p>
<p>When asked “How many kisses do you give to greet someone close to you?” the respondents were given the choice of one, two, three, four, five or more. We tracked the responses for each district in Belgium, France and Switzerland, retaining the number with the highest percentage of responses. The results are striking and show a number of clear patterns.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/297925/original/file-20191021-56194-zru25i.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/297925/original/file-20191021-56194-zru25i.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/297925/original/file-20191021-56194-zru25i.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/297925/original/file-20191021-56194-zru25i.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/297925/original/file-20191021-56194-zru25i.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/297925/original/file-20191021-56194-zru25i.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/297925/original/file-20191021-56194-zru25i.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/297925/original/file-20191021-56194-zru25i.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Distribution of the number of greeting kisses in Belgium, France and Switzerland.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In Belgium, nearly 100% of respondents stated that the correct number of kisses was one. Interestingly, the only part of France where the same holds true is hundreds of kilometers away, in the Brittany’s Finistère region. There the percentage answering one kiss was slightly lower, at around 70%, but still a clear majority. </p>
<p>Elsewhere in France, most residents exchange two kisses when greeting somebody, except for those in the region of Languedoc and the south of the Rhône-Alpes region. Two kisses are also customary in the French-speaking parts of Switzerland. In northern France, the areas in pink correspond to places where people still give four kisses. However, data indicate that in these regions the four-kiss greeting has stiff competition from the two-kiss version.</p>
<p>As can be seen on the maps below, the custom of four kisses is more prevalent among older residents of France, primarily in eastern Brittany and the Loire region. Yet there’s also a hot spot of support among under-25s in the Champagne region.</p>
<p><em>Move the mouse over the map below to see the prevalence and distribution of four kisses in the under-25s and the over-50s.</em></p>
<iframe frameborder="0" class="juxtapose" width="100%" height="800" src="https://cdn.knightlab.com/libs/juxtapose/latest/embed/index.html?uid=b11520e4-f4a4-11e9-b9b8-0edaf8f81e27"></iframe>
<p>The reason behind these differences remains unknown. One respondent remarked that the custom of three kisses appeared more prevalent in the area roughly corresponding to 17th-century Protestant France, and that it could have been a way of recognizing those of the same faith (three being a sign of the Trinity). Tradition has it that four kisses are given so that each person can kiss each of the cheeks of the other twice.</p>
<h2>Which cheek first?</h2>
<p>The second debate relates to the cheek that should be presented first for a kiss. While 15% of the 11,000 respondents said “both” or stated that they didn’t know, the remaining 85% had clearer ideas, as shown in the map below.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/298177/original/file-20191022-55655-gjuzeg.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/298177/original/file-20191022-55655-gjuzeg.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/298177/original/file-20191022-55655-gjuzeg.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/298177/original/file-20191022-55655-gjuzeg.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/298177/original/file-20191022-55655-gjuzeg.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/298177/original/file-20191022-55655-gjuzeg.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/298177/original/file-20191022-55655-gjuzeg.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/298177/original/file-20191022-55655-gjuzeg.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Distribution of which cheek is presented first when kissing in Belgium, France and Switzerland.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>We can see that the territory is <em>broadly</em> divided into two parts. In the south-eastern and eastern areas of France, it’s left cheek first. In the rest of the country, it’s the right. There are, however, two islands in each of these broad regions: In the blue zone, the French-speaking part of Switzerland stands out. In the red zone, Haute-Normandie is the exception. Here again, the patterns do not correspond to any known zones that could explain the difference.</p>
<h2>What do you call it?</h2>
<p>It is a less known fact that the way in which French speakers refer to the action of greeting with a kiss also varies. Our surveys enabled us to map with precision the areas corresponding to the use of seven regional verbs and expressions.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/298178/original/file-20191022-55701-sb6ib4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/298178/original/file-20191022-55701-sb6ib4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/298178/original/file-20191022-55701-sb6ib4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/298178/original/file-20191022-55701-sb6ib4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/298178/original/file-20191022-55701-sb6ib4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/298178/original/file-20191022-55701-sb6ib4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/298178/original/file-20191022-55701-sb6ib4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Distribution of expressions for ‘greeting with a kiss’ in Belgium, France and Switzerland.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Most of the words found on this map belong to the same family as the contemporary French term “bise” (from which “bisou” is derived). While it has fallen out of everyday use, the informal verb “biser” is found in the writing of authors such as <a href="http://www.philagora.net/lettres/queneau5.php">Raymond Queneau</a>) and still appears in some dictionaries. It is still used in western-central France, alongside the variant “biger,” which likely entered regional French by way of the local dialects (Poitevin, Angevin or Tourangeau) spoken by our ancestors a century ago.</p>
<p>The word “baise” is a slang term for sex in France but has no such connotation in Belgium, where one gives a “baise” (to someone). In fact, it’s based on the verb “baiser”, to kiss – also found in the old-fashioned word “baisemain,” meaning a kiss on the hand.</p>
<p>The variation “baisse,” found in part of the Picardie region, is also linked to the local form of the word “baiser.” The verb “se boujouter,” typically used in Normandy, comes from the word <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GIKT4_vC-0k">“boujou,”</a> which is a dialectical form of the French “bonjour” used in the region. (Note that it’s not related to the French word for cheek, “joue”).</p>
<p>In French-speaking Switzerland, the expression “se faire un bec” is used. It’s derived from the verb “becquer,” still used in French, which originally meant “to take by the beak.” The word “bec” can be linked to its informal French equivalent, “bécot” (which gives us the verb “bécoter,” meaning to kiss or smooch).</p>
<p>In the parts of France where Germanic dialects were spoken at the beginning of the 20th century, the term “schmoutz” is found. It’s of German origin and now means “kiss” in French – and also gave English speakers the word “smack,” as in to smack one’s lips. </p>
<p>Given the richness and variety of European culture and language, it’s unsurprising to find that how one refers to and performs a “simple” greeting can vary so much from region to region. In our great-grandparents’ time – not so long ago, really – regional dialects and languages were what distinguished different communities. Today, this wonderful diversity lives on, both in the physical world and, much to the delight of linguists, also online.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/124917/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Mathieu Avanzi ne travaille pas, ne conseille pas, ne possède pas de parts, ne reçoit pas de fonds d'une organisation qui pourrait tirer profit de cet article, et n'a déclaré aucune autre affiliation que son organisme de recherche.</span></em></p>Why do some people greet each other with a kiss? How does the custom vary from place to place? This article is excerpted from the forthcoming ‘Atlas of Regional Expressions.’Mathieu Avanzi, Maître de conférences en linguistique francaise, Sorbonne UniversitéLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1017212018-09-03T20:57:57Z2018-09-03T20:57:57ZTV’s first interracial kiss launched a lifelong career in activism<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/233938/original/file-20180828-86141-n2d8cy.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Nervous about how southern television viewers would react, NBC executives closely monitored the filming of the kiss between Nichelle Nichols and William Shatner.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.publicdomainfiles.com/show_file.php?id=13498604414055">U.S. Air Force</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>On Nov. 22, 1968, an episode of “Star Trek” titled “<a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0708443/">Plato’s Stepchildren</a>” broadcast the first interracial kiss on American television. </p>
<p>The episode’s plot is bizarre: Aliens who worship the Greek philosopher Plato use telekinetic powers to force the Enterprise crew to sing, dance and kiss. At one point, the aliens compel Lieutenant Uhura (Nichelle Nichols) and Captain Kirk (William Shatner) to embrace. Each character tries to resist, but eventually Kirk tilts Uhura back and the two kiss as the aliens lasciviously look on. </p>
<p>The smooch is not a romantic one. But in 1968 to show a black woman kissing a white man was a daring move.</p>
<p>The episode aired just one year after the U.S. Supreme Court’s Loving v. Virginia decision struck down state laws against interracial marriage. At the time, Gallup polls showed that <a href="https://news.gallup.com/poll/163697/approve-marriage-blacks-whites.aspx">fewer than 20 percent of Americans approved of such relationships</a>. </p>
<p>As a historian of civil rights and media, I’ve been fascinated by the woman at the center of this landmark television moment. Casting Nichelle Nichols as Lieutenant Uhura created possibilities for more creative and socially relevant <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=en&view_op=list_works&authuser=2&gmla=AJsN-F5Tq3S07JaTym4ggipQ2ywifKwXWexcK4OKzMurZJvHMSp4Ay3a-7D2FrPLHlppsoEw7gbBOO8SRsu2uxvQ50GkEDmajw&user=tMLTqzcAAAAJ">“Star Trek” storylines.</a></p>
<iframe src="https://tunein.com/embed/player/t123871983" style="width:100%;height:100px;" scrolling="no" frameborder="no" width="100%" height="400"></iframe>
<p><strong>Hear Prof. Delmont discuss this topic and how it has influenced his life’s studies on our <a href="https://heatandlightpod.com">Heat and Light podcast</a></strong></p>
<p>But just as significant is Nichols’s off-screen activism. She leveraged her role on “Star Trek” to become a recruiter for NASA, where she pushed for change in the space program. Her career arc shows how diverse casting on the screen can have a profound impact in the real world, too.</p>
<h2>‘A triumph of modern-day TV’</h2>
<p>In 1966, “Star Trek” creator Gene Rodenberry decided to cast Nichelle Nichols to play Lieutenant Uhura, a translator and communications officer from the United States of Africa. In doing so, he made Nichols the first African-American woman to have a continuing co-starring role on television.</p>
<p>The African-American press was quick to heap praise on Nichols’s pioneering role. </p>
<p>The Norfolk Journal and Guide hoped that it would “broaden her race’s foothold on the tube.” </p>
<p>The magazine Ebony featured Nichols <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=6iZkedjSfZoC&lpg=PA70&vq=%2522Nichelle%2520Nichols%2522&dq=%2522Nichelle%20Nichols%2522&pg=PA1#v=onepage&q&f=false">on its January 1967 cover</a> and described Uhura as “the first Negro astronaut, a triumph of modern-day TV over modern-day NASA.”</p>
<p>Yet the famous kiss between Uhura and Kirk almost never happened.</p>
<p>After the first season of “Star Trek” concluded in 1967, Nichols considered quitting after being offered a role on Broadway. She had started her career as a singer in New York and always dreamed of returning to the Big Apple. </p>
<p>But at a NAACP fundraiser in Los Angeles, she ran into Martin Luther King Jr.</p>
<p>Nichols would later recount their interaction. </p>
<p>“You must not leave,” <a href="https://youtu.be/pSq_UIuxba8">King told her</a>. “You have opened a door that must not be allowed to close…you changed the face of television forever…For the first time, the world sees us as we should be seen, as equals, as intelligent people.” </p>
<p>King went on to say that he and his family were fans of the show; <a href="https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/11/29/gene-roddenberry-son-star-trek_n_1119119.html">she was</a> a “hero” to his children.</p>
<p>With King’s encouragement, Nichols stayed on “Star Trek” for the original series’ full three-year run. </p>
<p>Nichols’ controversial kiss took place at the end of the third season. Nichols <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3hKKkGhEDoU">recalled</a> that NBC executives closely monitored the filming because they were nervous about how Southern television stations and viewers would react.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/gRfRXcP1Gsg?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Nichelle Nichols recounts the reaction to filming the first interracial kiss on television.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>After the episode aired, the network did receive an outpouring of letters from viewers – <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gRfRXcP1Gsg">and the majority were positive</a>. </p>
<p>In 1982, Nichols would tell the Baltimore Afro-American that she was amused by the amount of attention the kiss generated, especially because her own heritage was “a blend of races that includes Egyptian, Ethiopian, Moor, Spanish, Welsh, Cherokee Indian and a ‘blond blue-eyed ancestor or two.’”</p>
<h2>Space crusader</h2>
<p>But Nichols’s legacy would be defined by far more than a kiss.</p>
<p>After NBC canceled Star Trek in 1969, Nichols took minor acting roles on two television series, “<a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0053510/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1">Insight</a>” and “<a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0066645/?ref_=fn_al_tt_2">The D.A.</a>” She would also play a madame in the 1974 blaxploitation film “<a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0072325/?ref_=nv_sr_1">Truck Turner</a>.” </p>
<p>She also started to dabble in activism and education. In 1975, Nichols established Women in Motion, Inc. and won several government contracts to produce educational programs related to space and science. By 1977, she had been appointed to the board of directors of the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Space_Institute">National Space Institute</a>, a civil space advocacy organization.</p>
<p>That year she gave a speech at the institute’s annual meeting, “New Opportunities for the Humanization of Space, or Space: What’s in it for Me?” In it, she critiqued the lack of women and minorities in the astronaut corps, <a href="https://repository.si.edu/bitstream/handle/10088/30908/201302SH.pdf">challenging NASA</a> to “come down from your ivory tower of intellectual pursuit, because the next Einstein might have a Black face – and she’s female.”</p>
<p>Several of NASA’s top administrators were in the audience. They invited her to lead an astronaut recruitment program for the new space shuttle program. Soon, she packed her bags and began traveling the country, visiting high schools and colleges, speaking with professional organizations and legislators, and appearing on national television programs such as “Good Morning America.”</p>
<p>“The aim was to find qualified people among women and minorities, then to convince them that the opportunity was real and that it also was a duty, because this was historic,” Nichols told the Baltimore Afro-American in 1979. “I really had this sense of purpose about it myself.” </p>
<p>In her 1994 autobiography, “<a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=AbtNPgAACAAJ&dq=Beyond+Uhura&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiatNz-xpDdAhXCTN8KHdQ2AdwQ6AEIJzAA">Beyond Uhura</a>,” Nichols recalled that in the seven months before the recruitment program began, “NASA had received only 1,600 applications, including fewer than 100 from women and 35 from minority candidates.” But by the end of June 1977, “just four months after we assumed our task, 8,400 applications were in, including 1,649 from women (a 15-fold increase) and an astounding 1,000 from minorities.” </p>
<p>Nichols’s campaign recruited several trailblazing astronauts, including Sally Ride, the first American woman in space, Guion Bluford, the first African-American in space, and Mae Jemison, the first African-American woman in space.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/233939/original/file-20180828-86153-6dakin.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/233939/original/file-20180828-86153-6dakin.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=377&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/233939/original/file-20180828-86153-6dakin.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=377&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/233939/original/file-20180828-86153-6dakin.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=377&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/233939/original/file-20180828-86153-6dakin.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=473&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/233939/original/file-20180828-86153-6dakin.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=473&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/233939/original/file-20180828-86153-6dakin.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=473&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Nichelle Nichols speaks after the Space Shuttle Endeavour landed at Los Angeles International Airport Friday in September 2012.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.apimages.com/metadata/Index/Space-Shuttle-Last-Stop/f4c443def09a428c91ddcc7d6e228dde/1/0">AP Photo/Reed Saxon</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Relentless advocacy for inclusion</h2>
<p>Her advocacy for inclusion and diversity wasn’t limited to the space program.</p>
<p>As one of the first black women in a major television role, Nichols understood the importance of opening doors for minorities and women in entertainment. </p>
<p>Nichols continued to push for African-Americans to have more power in film and television. </p>
<p>“Until we Blacks and minorities become not only the producers, writers and directors, but the buyers and distributors, we’re not going to change anything,” <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=7dgDAAAAMBAJ&lpg=PA150&ots=wbTFv3IH98&dq=nichelle%20nichols%20ebony%201985%20billy%20dee%20williams&pg=PA154#v=onepage&q=nichelle%20nichols%20ebony%201985%20billy%20dee%20williams&f=false">she told Ebony in 1985</a>. “Until we become industry, until we control media or at least have enough say, we will always be the chauffeurs and tap dancers.” </p>
<p>It’s an issue that, unfortunately, remains relevant today. In February of this year, UCLA’s <a href="http://newsroom.ucla.edu/releases/hollywood-diversity-report-2018-ucla">annual Hollywood Diversity Report</a> found that women and people of color continue to be underrepresented as directors and in studio board rooms. It concluded that “Hollywood studios are leaving money on the table by not developing films and TV shows with more diverse casts.”</p>
<p>Fifty years ago, Nichols’s kiss may have broken an important cultural barrier. But as Nichols well knows, the quest to secure opportunities for women and minorities persists to this day – an effort that requires relentless pressure.</p>
<p><em>Our new podcast “<a href="https://heatandlightpod.com">Heat and Light</a>” features Prof. Delmont discussing this story in depth.</em></p>
<p><a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/heat-and-light/id1424521855?mt=2"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/233721/original/file-20180827-75984-1gfuvlr.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=134&fit=clip" alt="Listen on Apple Podcasts" width="134" height="34"></a> <a href="https://www.google.com/podcasts?feed=aHR0cHM6Ly9oZWF0YW5kbGlnaHRwb2QuY29tL2ZlZWQucnNz"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/233720/original/file-20180827-75978-3mdxcf.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=134&fit=clip" alt="" width="134" height="34"></a> <a href="https://www.stitcher.com/s?fid=221807&refid=stpr"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/236756/original/file-20180917-158222-1w998g0.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=116&fit=clip" alt="Listen on Stitcher" width="116" height="34"></a> <a href="https://radiopublic.com/heat-and-light-WYDE55"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/233717/original/file-20180827-75990-86y5tg.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=105&fit=clip" alt="Listen on RadioPublic" width="105" height="34"></a> <a href="https://tunein.com/podcasts/History-Podcasts/Heat-and-Light-p1149068/"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/233723/original/file-20180827-75984-f0y2gb.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=86&fit=clip" alt="Listen on TuneIn" width="86" height="34"></a></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/101721/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Matthew Delmont does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The career arc of Nichelle Nichols – the first black woman to have a continuing co-starring role on TV – shows how diverse casting can have as much of an impact off the screen as it does on it.Matthew Delmont, Professor of History, Arizona State UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/813472017-12-20T13:22:48Z2017-12-20T13:22:48ZWhy most of us lean to the right when we kiss<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/200193/original/file-20171220-4957-ot704f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://theconversation.com/drafts/81347/edit">Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Your brain is an organ of two halves – the left side and the right side. And there are many brain functions, such as language skills or which hand you write with, which are organised mostly in one side of the brain or the other. </p>
<p>Simple behavioural tests have now allowed us to see how this organisation is revealed through biases in how we see and interact with the world – and each other – often without us being aware of it. </p>
<p>Examining how people perceive a diagram of <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21228922">variously orientated lines</a> and angles provided clues that people typically have a subconscious bias for seeing things set out in clockwise orientations. </p>
<p>We then realised that this might also be related to a number of physical instincts that people have, such as which way they turn their heads. After looking at <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27350096">recent research</a> in visual psychophysics and visual neuroscience, we saw various perceptual and behavioral phenomena in which humans can have a directional bias.</p>
<p>Many of these turning behaviours are seen early in life. For example, infants have an initial bias for turning the head to the right (and consequently extending the left arm outward to compensate for that movement). </p>
<p>Some <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/421711a">previous research</a> found that such an instinctive turn to the right extends to adulthood – when an adult kisses another on the lips, their heads tend to automatically lean to the right. But is this an extension of the bias that humans are born with, or do people simply learn to kiss that way? </p>
<p>In Western societies it is commonplace to see people kiss in public, on television, and in films. But are these screen kisses reflecting society, or do they influence how people behave? The prior research on the subject was all conducted with kissing in what are known as “W.E.I.R.D.” – Western, Educated, Industrialized, Rich and Democratic – societies. So the conclusions might not reflect what humans naturally do in the absence of learning through observation. </p>
<p>Bangladesh seemed like an interesting non-W.E.I.R.D. country to examine this. It is a conservative Muslim country where kissing is prohibited in public, and even censored from television or films. So, whereas similar results from the W.E.I.R.D. countries could be attributed to social learning or socio-cultural factors, the same cannot as easily be said in Bangladesh. </p>
<p>In our study, we asked a number of married couples in Bangladesh to kiss privately in their own homes. They then went into separate rooms to report on various aspects of the kiss independently of each partner. </p>
<h2>A kiss is still a kiss</h2>
<p>The <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-017-04942-9">results</a> showed that more than two thirds of the kissing individuals had a bias for turning their heads to the right. When initiating a kissing “move” (men were 15 times more likely to initiate the kiss) right-handed people leaned right and left-handed people leaned left. </p>
<p>The person being kissed, regardless of whether they were left or right handed, responded by matching the partners’ head leaning direction. It felt awkward to go the other way as reported by most of the kiss recipients and kiss initiators in our study. </p>
<p>It turns out that humans are similar, even if our social values, and the habits we are exposed to, differ. This bias in the act of kissing is likely innate and determined by the brain splitting up tasks to its different hemispheres, similar to being either right- or left-handed. It is perhaps specifically concerned with the functions in the left cerebral hemisphere, located in the emotion and decision-related areas of the brain.</p>
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<p>Different hormone levels (such as testosterone) in each hemisphere and neurotransmitters might be unevenly distributed to each hemisphere (such as dopamine, involved in reward behaviours) and give rise to a bias to turn right.</p>
<p>If you do lean in for a kiss to the left, you may be in the minority. But don’t worry – if the person you are kissing wants to be kissed, they will likely go left, too.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/81347/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Activity in the left hand side of the brain, specifically in areas of emotion, could explain why most people lean to the right before lips smack.Michael J. Proulx, Senior Lecturer in Psychology, University of BathA.K.M. Rezaul Karim, Professor of Psychology, University of DhakaAlexandra A. de Sousa, Senior Lecturer in Psychology, Bath Spa UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/463832015-08-26T02:50:34Z2015-08-26T02:50:34ZGiving lip: censorship, subversion and the enduring power of the screen kiss<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/92764/original/image-20150824-26858-1jio7dx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Audrey Hepburn and George Peppard get it on in Breakfast at Tiffany's. </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/37749111@N07/3500121300/in/photolist-6ki37Y-6hC4cm-9mvjR2-r4wEKv-8wTdK5-8pHTnD-dXmoh4-akfKG5-vDXeae-7Gh5hN-jrBnt2-bzRDUy-dZnxjJ-7EBEAA-6PqbAp-5d6YrN-5jF1Yq-bbEP14-qruDA8-9WvUkR-7TidTH-e4ULsq-6zHrBY-6eZyBk-2iFEvE-uBXnY-aw2aRP-7TmtYL-6mS1An-8DJsjG-6zDkdF-e1bkDG-6aHfHN-8SzUsA-8PzB4F-8N5o49-8hhs9X-e1be3h-bXW6hu-9qVQtt-aKGGxT-gqbEV-6Dr6qT-dWipcA-s6Qy6b-MVfWR-6HM3QY-dUNP1T-7Chfdy-nDp9QY">a.heart.17/flickr</a>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Name your favourite screen kiss. Go on. Leo and Kate in Titanic, Audrey and George in Breakfast at Tiffany’s, James Stewart and Kim Novak in Vertigo? Here’s guessing it doesn’t feature Woody and Nina who, two weeks ago in reality-television land, <a href="http://www.theage.com.au/entertainment/the-bachelor-how-could-a-world-record-kiss-be-so-boring-20150812-gixw5r.html">staged a world record attempt</a> (and unmemorable four-minute publicity stunt) at the longest screen kiss during The Bachelor. </p>
<p>But why talk of kisses? Because beyond the soft focus lenses, the overwrought soundtracks and the breathless small talk between lip locks, they provide a fascinating glimpse of representations of desire, sexuality, and the erotic. And because who gets to kiss, and who doesn’t, reveals a complex dynamic of censorship and subversion across screen histories and cultures. </p>
<h2>Censorship</h2>
<p>The humble kiss has figured in its fair share of censorship debates over time. These debates have usually centred on whether the kiss should be represented at all, as well as a monitoring of the content and duration of the amorous scene. </p>
<p>In some screen cultures, you’ll never see a romantic kiss. As in Iranian cinema, which follows Islamic codes of conduct, though directors still find ways to push the censorship code and provide representations of tender touch between members of the opposite sex. </p>
<p>Similarly, Bollywood often defers or displaces the kiss onto a range of visual symbols. A shot of a smouldering fire or a pair of intertwined flowers, for example. These symbols were adopted in response to the <a href="http://www.vakilno1.com/bareacts/cinematograph/cinematograpghact.html">Cinematograph Act 1952</a> in India, which pronounced explicit representations of kissing “indecent”.</p>
<p>A lesser-known aspect of Bollywood’s history of the kiss is its wonderful screen culture prior to the above act. In early films such as <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0155799/">Karma</a> (1933), we see the heroine passionately and repeatedly embracing and kissing her lover in an open display of eroticism and active female desire.</p>
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<p>In more recent years, kissing has made something of a comeback in Hindi cinema, with more explicit representations of desire on offer. So while representations of the kiss are sometimes censored, we can also see an impulse on the part of filmmakers to test the boundaries of that censorship and to expand the representational terrain of the scene of desire. </p>
<h2>Duration</h2>
<p>The duration of the kiss has also been a point of contention across cinema histories. From the early 1930s to the late 1960s, American film production was subjected to a review and censorship process under the <a href="http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/UsefulNotes/TheHaysCode?from=Main.HaysCode">Hays Code</a>. </p>
<p>The Code detailed a number of rules and regulations regarding the depiction of topics such as crime, violence, and sex, in order to ensure a certain standard of “wholesome entertainment for all the people”.</p>
<p>The Code stipulated the following restrictions on “scenes of passion”:</p>
<p>a) They should not be introduced when not essential to the plot<br>
b) Excessive and lustful kissing, lustful embraces, suggestive postures and gestures, are not to be shown<br>
c) In general, passion should so be treated that these scenes do not stimulate the lower and baser element.</p>
<p>The unofficial rule of thumb was that a kiss should not last longer than three seconds, in order to curb representations of excessive passion onscreen. But filmmakers found clever ways of subverting those rules. </p>
<p>Alfred Hitchcock’s film [Notorious](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Notorious_(1946_film) (1946) features a now-famous scene in which the Cary Grant and Ingrid Bergman characters kiss for three minutes. Over the course of the three-minute scene, we are presented with a series of three-second kisses interspersed with suggestive conversation (“Perhaps we should stay in tonight … ”). </p>
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<p><a href="http://the.hitchcock.zone/wiki/Production_Code_Administration">Bergman later recalled</a>: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>We just kissed each other and talked, leaned away and kissed each other again … the censors couldn’t and didn’t cut the scene because we never at any one point kissed for more than three seconds … we nibbled on each other’s ears, and kissed a cheek, so that it looked endless.</p>
</blockquote>
<h2>Content</h2>
<p>The monitoring of the content of the scene of desire is another important aspect of the history of screen censorship. Under the Hays Code, gay and lesbian desires were classified as sexual perversions and were not permitted representational space onscreen. </p>
<p>But during this period, filmmakers found ways of technically and superficially sticking to the rules while thoroughly subverting them. In The <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0446755/">Painted Veil</a> (1934), the Greta Garbo character repeatedly embraces, kisses, and even undresses another woman.</p>
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<p>Because the two characters are sisters, the film gets away with the display of transgressive desire and eroticism under the (rather thinly veiled) pretence of being nothing more than wholesome sisterly affection. </p>
<p>So while the official censorship codes forbade such a “scandalous” representation, rebellions against these restrictions abound in Hays Code-era films and filmmaking practice, allowing for the inclusion of gay, lesbian and queer desire on screen during this period. </p>
<p>The historical practice of censoring the representation of the kiss, or the restriction of a kissing scene’s duration or content, reveals a cultural and social anxiety about the affective potential of showing sexual content on the mainstream screen – or what the Hays Code called the stimulation of the “lower and baser element”. </p>
<p>The kiss has become a contested terrain where the very principles of this censure can be subverted by filmmakers to expand the politics of representation. </p>
<p>It’s through the kiss that we can map a move towards more expansive and inclusive depictions of desire and love onscreen.</p>
<p>So a kiss is not just a kiss, after all, as time goes by.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/46383/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Athena Bellas does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>A gesture of desire, sexuality and the erotic, the screen kiss has often been subject to censorship and controversy. But for directors game to bend the rules, the kiss can be a subversive act.Athena Bellas, PhD candidate and sessional tutor, The University of MelbourneLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/344592014-11-21T06:02:57Z2014-11-21T06:02:57ZLips are the most exposed erogenous zone, which makes kissing feel very good<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/65006/original/image-20141119-31615-1g3eez.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=107%2C7%2C916%2C631&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Getting jiggy.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/pedrosimoes7/2303136704/sizes/l">Pedrosimoes7</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Scientists in the Netherlands have reported that we <a href="http://www.microbiomejournal.com/content/2/1/41">share about 80m bacteria</a> during a passionate ten-second kiss; a finding that makes puckering up seem cringe-worthy – and downright unsanitary at the start of cold and flu season.</p>
<p>But take heart: we’re more likely to get sick by shaking hands throughout the day than through kissing. And the science behind this behaviour reveals that along with all of those germs, we share plenty of benefits with a partner as well. </p>
<figure class="align-left ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/65008/original/image-20141119-31623-166cic7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/65008/original/image-20141119-31623-166cic7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=455&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/65008/original/image-20141119-31623-166cic7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=455&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/65008/original/image-20141119-31623-166cic7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=455&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/65008/original/image-20141119-31623-166cic7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=572&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/65008/original/image-20141119-31623-166cic7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=572&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/65008/original/image-20141119-31623-166cic7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=572&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Early beginnings.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/staipale/2281431583/sizes/o/">Sami Taipale</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/">CC BY-NC-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Kissing is not all about bacterial exchange or romance. Our first experiences with love and security usually involve lip pressure and stimulation through behaviours that mimic kissing, like nursing or bottle feeding. These early events <a href="https://www.webmedcentral.com/article_view/3785">lay down important neural pathways</a> in a baby’s brain that associate kissing with positive emotions that continue to be important in throughout his life. </p>
<p>Our lips are the body’s most exposed erogenous zone. Unlike in other animals, human lips are uniquely everted, meaning they purse outwardly. They are packed with sensitive nerve endings so even the slightest brush sends a cascade of information to our brains, which can feel very good.</p>
<p>Kissing activates a very large part of the brain associated with sensory information because we’re at work making sense of the experience in order to decide what to do next. Kisses work their magic by setting off a whirlwind of neurotransmitters and hormones <a href="http://www.livescience.com/3328-saliva-secret-ingredient-kisses.html">through our bodies</a> that influence how we think and feel. </p>
<h2>Kissing codes</h2>
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<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/65011/original/image-20141119-31628-bcwuke.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/65011/original/image-20141119-31628-bcwuke.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=482&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/65011/original/image-20141119-31628-bcwuke.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=482&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/65011/original/image-20141119-31628-bcwuke.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=482&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/65011/original/image-20141119-31628-bcwuke.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=606&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/65011/original/image-20141119-31628-bcwuke.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=606&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/65011/original/image-20141119-31628-bcwuke.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=606&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Opposites attract.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/49026977@N05/5464282374/sizes/o/">Jamie Solorio</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
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<p>If there’s real “chemistry” between two people, a kiss can set the stage for a new romance. A passionate kiss puts two people in very close proximity – nose to nose. We learn about each other by engaging our sense of smell, our taste buds and sense of touch. And through that information all sorts of signals are being sent to our brain informing us about the other person. In fact, the scent of man <a href="http://rspb.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/260/1359/245">can provide subconscious clues</a> about his DNA to his partner.</p>
<p>Evolutionary psychologists at the State University of New York at Albany found that 59% of men and 66% of women say they have <a href="http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/08/070830121629.htm">ended a budding relationship</a> because a kiss didn’t go well. It’s nature’s ultimate litmus test, nudging us to be most attracted to the people that may be the best genetic partners. </p>
<p>Research by Swiss biologist <a href="http://rspb.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/260/1359/245">Claus Wedekind</a> found that women are most attracted to the scents of men who carry a different genetic code for their immune system in a region of DNA known as the major histocompatibility complex or MHC. </p>
<p>Scientists suspect that when a couple who carry distinctly different genetics for fighting disease, their children are likely to benefit by having a strong immune system. We may not exactly be thinking about parenthood when we connect with someone at the lips, but kissing provides clues to help us decide whether to take a relationship further. (However, it’s important to add that women who take the birth control pill show the opposite preference toward men with <a href="http://genome.wellcome.ac.uk/doc_WTD020754.html">MHC genetics</a> most like their own. This suggests that when we are on contraceptives, we may be fooling our bodies in more ways than we realise.)</p>
<h2>Getting hot under the collar</h2>
<p>Aside from helping us find a great match, kissing has other perks as well. It sets off a cascade of neural impulses that bounce between the brain and the tongue, lips, facial muscles, and skin. Billions of little nerve connections distribute information around the body, producing chemical signals that change the way we feel.</p>
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<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/65013/original/image-20141119-31621-7xx09p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/65013/original/image-20141119-31621-7xx09p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/65013/original/image-20141119-31621-7xx09p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/65013/original/image-20141119-31621-7xx09p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=900&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/65013/original/image-20141119-31621-7xx09p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1131&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/65013/original/image-20141119-31621-7xx09p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1131&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/65013/original/image-20141119-31621-7xx09p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1131&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Fostering ‘love’ sensations.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/lst1984/1798329791/sizes/l">Lst1984</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/">CC BY-NC</a></span>
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<p>A passionate kiss can spike the neurotransmitter dopamine, which is linked to feelings of craving and desire. Oxytocin, known as the “love hormone,” fosters a sense of closeness and attachment. Adrenaline boosts our heart rate and can make us start sweating as our bodies begin to anticipate what might occur later. Cortisol, known as the stress hormone, also dips to reduce uneasiness. Blood vessels dilate, breathing can deepen, cheeks flush and our pulse quickens. </p>
<p>Kissing fosters the sensations we often describe when we are falling in love. In this way, a kiss can herald in a new romantic relationship. It can also solidify the strong bonds we share with family members and friends. Kisses come in many varieties and are inherently tied to the most meaningful and significant moments of our lives by providing a means to communicate beyond what words can convey. </p>
<p>Science has barely begun to study kissing, despite its obvious evolutionary and personal significance, but what we already know demonstrates that there’s a lot more to going on than meets the eyes – and lips.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/34459/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Sheril Kirshenbaum is the author of The Science of Kissing</span></em></p>Scientists in the Netherlands have reported that we share about 80m bacteria during a passionate ten-second kiss; a finding that makes puckering up seem cringe-worthy – and downright unsanitary at the…Sheril Kirshenbaum, Director of the Energy Poll , The University of Texas at AustinLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.