OXYTOCIN

Add that to your vocabulary if it's not already there. From this weekend's reading on the brain, I found:

"Now researchers are beginning to sort out how body and mind work together to produce the wild, tender, ineffable feelings we call love. They have found, for example, that oxytocin, a chemical that fosters the bond between mothers and children, probably helps fuel romantic love as well....Far from reducing love's thrill to dry facts, biologists' efforts underscore the emotion's importance."

And then, a little ways down:

"Like some human playboys, male prairie voles seem to get a kick out of courtship mixed with danger. Carter and colleague Courtney DeVries made young, unmated volues swim for three minutes before allowing them to meet a prospective mate. The exercise elevated the animals' stress hormones, which are also heightened by fear. But while females scurried off after the swim without bonding to the males as they normally would, male voles bonded faster than ever." (Shareon Brownlee in Student Brains; School Issues edited by Robert Sylwester. 1998. Published by SkyLight Training and Publishing Inc., Arlington Heights, IL.)

I'm sure there's something to be learned from this vole study that may be applied in both the classroom and bedroom. Darned if I can see it now.

Beast regards,
Wildwind