May 13, 2004
Handsome men evolved thanks to picky females
11:13 12 May 04
NewScientist.com news service
Today's handsome hunks may owe their good looks to a sexual power shift towards the fair sex during primate evolution.
As our ancestors evolved, the ability to attract a female mate through good looks became may have become more important in the mating stakes than the ability to fight off male rivals, suggests a new study.
By analysing the shapes and sizes of facial features in chimps, gorillas and other primates, researchers in Germany and the University of Cambridge, UK, found evidence suggesting that our ancestors may have gradually sacrificed fighting for wooing.
"Our research suggests that in early humans, a face that was attractive as opposed to aggressive conferred an advantage," says Eleanor Weston at the Research Institute Senckenberg in Frankfurt, a member of the team.
She says that changes were probably driven by choosy females who began to demand handsomeness, not brute force.
Posted by Dienekes at May 13, 2004 05:14 PM | PermaLinkWell, handsome man is not just handsome like peacock male which is really result of choosy female peacock. Handsome human really represent biological health. Such study might forgot what really handsome mean in human.
Posted by: Anothergenius at May 13, 2004 10:23 PMwell this kind of contradicts the whole blacks on blondes fetish thing then, because that seems to be driven by aggressive features.
????
:~
Obviously, if you have both, you have that much more advantage.
Posted by: Phlegm at May 16, 2004 03:09 PM