mind over matter

Happy Valentine’s Day! I’ll make this one quick so you can get to dinner on time.

College psychology departments love throwing romantically-minded events around Valentine’s Day (witness our own Dr. Finkel’s “Can You Ever Just be Friends?” lecture, held yesterday; if I were a more intrepid reporter, I would’ve attended, but I had a category recitation to prepare.)

Harvard University is taking it up a notch tonight with an event bearing the tagline “Science is Sexy.” There will be lectures on the science of sex, a DJ, plenty of booze and a fashion show “designed to highlight the science of physical attraction.” I guess that means student models will be strutting their stuff in duds that highlight the ideal waist-to-hip ratio.

 My favorite line:

“I’ve never seen so many jazzed-up students in my life,” said Marc Hauser, one of the organizers of the event and a professor of psychology, organismic and evolutionary biology, and biological anthropology at the university.

I would’ve gone with an exclamation point there. Now, be honest - you thought it said orgasmic biology, didn’t you?!