Love, Explained: The Science of Romance

Science of Speed Dating Helps Singles Find Love

Speed dating and other innovations in matchmaking can confound even the most focused dater, but simple tips can help

Your Brain in Love

Cupid's arrows, laced with neurotransmitters, find their marks

Passionate Love in the Brain, as Revealed by MRI Scans [Web Exclusive Graphic]

Your love is my drug: How passion sparks the same painkilling pathways as drugs

Who says love hurts? New research shows that strong romantic feelings actually ease physical pain via the same neural pathways as powerful drugs.

By simply gazing at a picture of their beloved, undergraduates in a recent study were able to substantially reduce their experience of pain...

Learning the Look of Love: That Sly "Come Hither" Stare

Series IntroWhile it might not be witchcraft, the formula for ‘love at first sight’ remains a mystery. However, if you pop the following ingredients into a kettle: large pupils, long glances, and a lovely, attentive smile, you may not have concocted a bona fide love potion but your witch’s brew could contain some insight into the laws of attraction.Being an optometrist and all around eye aficionado, I have a deep interest in the connection between the eyes and love...

A Scientific Dating Insight: Create Uncertainty

The aphrodisiac effect of not knowing how much they like you

Why Your Romantic Partner Annoys You

A spouse's traits can become more grating than the quirks of others

My lust: A Valentine's Day confession and the psychology of infatuation

Author’s Note: The following was originally posted at The Psychologist Web site as part of their "Sin Week." Once you've read my confession on the sin of lust, be sure to check out my colleagues' shameful confessions about their own gluttony, sloth, pride, wrath, envy and greed at the BPS Research Digest ...

"Mama's Boy" Monkeys Score with the Ladies

Females in some species may have evolved to play a critical role in their sons' reproductive success

The Illusions of Love

How do we fool thee? Let us count the ways that illusions play with our hearts and minds

The Science of Staying in Love; and Scientists as Communicators--and Heroes

Scientific American Editor in Chief Mariette DiChristina and psychology researcher Robert Epstein, a contributing editor to Scientific American MIND magazine, talk about falling in love and staying that way...

Love Lessens Pain

Contemplating a new love can reduce pain by activating the same brain region that processes addictions and analgesic drugs. Cynthia Graber reports

Arranged Marriages Can Be Real Love Connection

Speaking March 10th at the 92nd Street Y's Tribeca site in New York City, Scientific American MIND contributing editor Robert Epstein discussed how arranged marriages can surpass love matches for long-term contentment...

What Attachment Theory Can Teach about Love and Relationships

The surprising secrets to finding the right partner for a healthy relationship

Fall in Love and Stay That Way

Nothing is more fulfilling than being in a successful love relationship. Yet we leave our love lives entirely to chance. Maybe we don't have to anymore

Scientific tricks for staying in love

A friend once told me how, as a child visiting a zoo, his eyes focused  on one of the many monkeys in an enclosed exhibit. The monkey, in turn, began looking back.

True Love: How to Find It

Combing through your social network is the most fruitful—and most common—way of finding the love of your life