ATTRACTIVENESS
Have you ever looked at a drop-dead gorgeous person and wondered
whether or not they have a better life than you?
Well, chances are… they DO!!
As we develop from a baby to an adult, we grow outwards from a
line of symmetry that runs from the centre of our foreheads to the
centre of our chests. You can actually feel this line if you run
your tongue along the roof of your mouth.
Our cells are supposed to develop in a perfect mirror image along
this line. And this symmetry in our appearance is recognised as
attractiveness by other people. However, in realty, random events
in our lives, such as traumatic childhood diseases, mean that we
grow up looking slightly different on each side of our faces.
When we choose a good-looking partner, we are actually pulling
off a clever evolutionary trick. An attractive face signals good
health and brings with it a package of genes that, in theory, give
our children a better chance of growing up fit and healthy.
Scientists believe physical attractiveness is a key component of
success.
The Test
This test came in three parts:
1. Our contestants were given photographs of themselves. Then, as
a group, they had to rank themselves in order of attractiveness
starting from 1 being the most attractive and 8 being the least
attractive, laying out the photographs in order of attractiveness
from the most to the least attractive. They had 5 minutes to complete
this part of the test. 2. Facial Attractiveness Poll: their photos
were also shown to a large group of people between the ages of 20
and 40 to see how they would rank our contestants. The pictures
were polled for facial attractiveness, leadership strength and warmth.
3. Laptop Preference Test: our contestants were also tested on their
ability to spot symmetry in a large range of similar looking faces.
They were shown 40 pairs of faces on a laptop. For twenty of these
pairs, one of the faces had been subtly altered to make it more
attractive (i.e. symmetrical). Our expert then measured how good
each contestant was at spotting the more attractive face.
The Experts
Professor
Dave Perrett and his team - St Andrews University.
Why Is It Superhuman To Be Attractive?
Better-looking people have an advantage over their peers at all
stages in life. Premature babies get better care and attention if
they are good looking. Kids at school get more attention and better
marks if they are good looking.
Good-looking people are more likely to get off crime in court and
are half as likely to go to prison if convicted. Attractive people
are perceived as being more intelligent and more successful - this
is reinforced all their lives and can account for why some people
do better than others. They are better able to recognise good looks
in others and are more likely to have attractive children.
However, it's not all good news. There is some evidence to suggest
that better looking people, an women in particular, do suffer some
discrimination.
Scoring
Each contestant's scores in part two and three above were added together.
Our Superhuman was the contestant who was considered to be the
most attractive in the poll and who was best able to recognise attractiveness
(i.e. facial symmetry) in others.
Click here to see the
final results >
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