1. The Biology of
Love
Hormones, Sex, and Evolution

2. If not for sex[ual reproduction], much of what is flamboyant and beautiful in nature would not exist –Olivia Judson, Dr. Tatiana’s Sex Advice to All Creation

3. Why Sex?

4. There are a whole lot a’ downsides….

5. A sexual organism has only 50% of the fitness of an asexual organism.

6. You Have to Find and Woo a Mate

7. Really, is there any difference?

8. You Have to Fight to Win Their Love

9. You'll Be More Conspicuous to Predators
Yup, that’s a bird doing a courtship dance!

10. Sex Increases Risk of Diseases
That Lead to Sickness Infertility
Death

11. So, Why Sex?

12. The Red Queen Hypothesis

13. Evolve faster than those that consume you!

14. Sex is like the best strategy for winning the lottery
Lucky in Love

15. Increasing Variety =
Greater Success

16. The Difference Between Males and Females Many kids?
Or few kids that I invest in?

17. 69 Children Between 1725-1765, the Wife of Feodor Vassiyev had
In Her 27 Pregnancies
She Gave Birth to
16 Pairs of Twins
7 Sets of Triplets
4 Sets of Quadruplets
All that and she doesn’t get a name??

18. Whose your Daddy?
1,042
Children

19. Love is Like a Game of Chess
It's All About Strategy

20. Make the Choice That Will Lead to the Greatest Number of Successful Offspring!
Base Your Decisions on the
Environment in Which You Live

21. Monogamy...
My Heart Beats Only For You

22. Polygamy...
I Love You and You and You and You and

23. Sometimes sex just solves problems
“Hippie Chimps”
Make Love
Not War
That was fun….wanna share some fruit?
But where are their bell bottoms??

24. Yup, they’re our cousins!
But don’t mate with your cousins…that
spells trouble!

25. So who do you choose? Maybe you’ll just sniff out your mate

26. An attractive scent
indicates an immune
system different
than yours.
(That’s the smell
of success!)

27. 3 Stages of Love
LUST
ATTRACTION
ATTACHMENT

28. You know you’ve found someone you like when…
SEX HORMONES Surge!
You’ve got that lustful feeling due to rising levels of testosterone and estrogen in your body.

29. Ovulation
In one of women spending time at nightclubs and bars, those women whose clothing revealed lots of skin (as opposed to women with longer sleeves or pants on) were found to be ovulating. Our sex hormones (like the rise in estradiol during ovulation) will cause our brain to make decisions that just might lead to an increased chance of passing on our genes.

30. Then a complex cocktail of chemicals are released
When your crush walks into a room, you’re heart races, palms get sweaty, and your mouth goes dry!
Epinephrine
Aka…adrenaline

31. Send in the Dopamine! Cell signaling is everywhere!
Dopamine has the same effect on a brain that cocaine has!
This neurotransmitter is released in large quantities in your brain. The intense rush of pleasure is due to stimulating desire/reward sensors in the brain.
Cell signaling is everywhere!

32. Drop the Serotonin and stir
Blah blah blah “MY LOVE” blah blah blah “I LOVE HIM” blah blah blah “She’s so beautiful” blah blah blah “SIGH” blah blah blah “Can’t wait to see him” blah blah blah blah blah blah Blah blah blah “What homework?” blah blah blah “She’s all mine” blah blah “I love his smile” blah blah blah blah “SIGH” blah blah blah blah blah blah “She’s all I can think about!” blah blah blah blah blah “Maybe we’ll get married” blah blah blah “so sexy!” blah…

33. Low serotonin levels in new couples’ brains may explain why you can’t concentrate on anything but your true love…you’re obsessed! Folks with OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder) also have low serotonin levels. An accident… I think not! WHY??

34. And then the Power Player of Hormones OXYTOCIN!
Also known as the Love Hormone or the Cuddle Hormone, oxytocin is instrumental in forming long term bonds between individuals.
It’s released during orgasm, making partners feel more closely connected.
It’s released during breastfeeding, creating intense bonds between mama and baby.
It’s released when you hug someone, hold hands, or laugh together.

36. How to Fall in Love (if it doesn’t happen by itself)
Find a complete stranger
Reveal to each other intimate details about your lives for half an hour
Then, stare deeply into each other’s eyes without talking for four minutes
York psychologist, Professor Arthur Arun, has been studying why people fall in love. He asked his subjects to carry out the above 3 steps and found that many of his couples felt deeply attracted after the 34 minute experiment. Two of his subjects later got married.
Science Fair anyone?

37. Next Question
How
Many
Offspring
Should
You
Have?

38. If You Decide to Have Few...

39. You
Must
Provide
Parental Care

40. If You Decide to Have Many...
You Won't Have to Provide Parental Care

41. That You'll Die Soon Afterwards
But,
You'll
Probably
Be So
Exhausted
That You'll Die Soon Afterwards

42. Are You a Desperate Male?

43. Commit Sexual Suicide It's Better to Have Loved and Lost Then to
Have Never Loved at All!

44. Or Allow Yourself to Be Exploited
And Persist as a Tiny
Blood-Sucking Parasite
Attached to the Female's Body

45. Get a Sex Change! What if a Member of the Opposite Sex is Not
Available?
Get a Sex Change!

46. Maybe you never wanted someone of the opposite sex in the first place!
We girls are
Perfect the way
we are!

47. But, What if You're Alone?

48. Shy?

49. Rejected?

50. Unable to find a mate?

51. All is Not Lost

53. Go Asexual
But, Remember You Lose the Benefits of Sex So Switch Back When Possible

54. The Big Ideas?
Sex is good! Not just to individuals, but to the fitness of an entire species.
We are products of our hormones!
(But of course, our knowledge and thought process
can help us make appropriate decisions)
Many species have gotten along just fine with the help of asexual reproduction.
We (all species) are always evolving….even if it means doing so just to stay the same.
Sexual selection is a tough game, but it is a big reason
for the beauty and diversity of life on Earth

55. The End

56. Photo Credits Slide # Photographer URL 3 Unknown 4
Michael Reeve
dia1a.png 5
Arthur Morris
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8BA2A5A2C4196C3EDFEC0E7E6A55A1E4F32AD3138 7
Billy Campbell
0.jpg 8
Lampron 9 10
hearts.jpg 11
John Tenniel
jpg 12
h/lottery+balls.jpg 13
40.gif 14
Steven Rhoads
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Can you identify?
Found on Creative Commons Flickr Search 16 17
PoppyW 18 19
WTL 20
M. Boylen
_harem.jpg/300px-Callorhinus_ursinus_and_harem.jpg

57. Slide # Photographer URL 21 alb 21 lion James Preston Brian Scott 22
Can you identify?
Found on Creative Commons Flickr Search 23
Martha de Jong-Lantink 4/ 24 25
Unknown
s.jpg 26
Anvi 27 28
TarynMarie 29
T.W. Pietsch 30
Kawa0310
00/ 31
tlindenbaum 32
ucumari 33
Jill Greenberg 34
Arnar Valdimarsson 35
Mike Kemp
6.jpg 36 37
Tim Knight 38
Sailing Nomad 40
fever/saturday-night-fever jpg 41