SA Special Editions

Achieving sexual climax requires a complex conspiracy of sensory and psychological signals—and the eventual silencing of critical brain areas

Neuroscientists are learning how pure sexual desire contributes to lasting relationships

Brain imaging is providing clues about why some women can’t reach climax—and how to help them

Researchers are revealing hidden complexities behind the simple act of kissing, which relays powerful messages to your brain, body and partner

For most people, pornography use has no negative effects—and it may even deter sexual violence

Sexual dysfunction can emerge when certain nerves start misfiring. Could antidepressants be partly to blame?

Might a little-known cranial nerve be the route by which human pheromones turn us on?

Inclined toward gender equality, this close relative of humans substitutes sex for aggression

Homosexual behavior is surprisingly common in the animal kingdom. It may be adaptive—helping animals to get along, maintain fecundity and protect their young

Science offers a clear and surprising answer to a controversial question

The preference for playing hockey, or house, is far from fixed. Sex differences in the brain are small—until experiences and expectations magnify them

What does it take to help them thrive?

Pairing up might have been the best move our ancestors ever made

The key to keeping the magic alive in a marriage, experts say, is finding ways to promote the positive

Men and women have different ways of speaking, but research reveals the conversational gender divide is not as stark as it seems

Can women and men be friends? Attraction plays a significant role in opposite-sex friendship, but that doesn't make the bond any less beneficial

Understanding the science of online dating can turn a frustrating experience into a fruitful mission