Soul Mate Biology: Science of attachment and love (Fascinating Life Sciences)

"Love, one of the most profound of human emotions, love that accompanies us from puberty to old age, love that follows us from ancient times to modern, from ancient writings, through the Bible and the texts of medieval scribes to modern day books and movies. Through the millennia love has lost none of its secrecy, charm, attractiveness, craziness, even in this digital age, when we are overwhelmed by information. But what is love? Where does this emotion originate? Are we humans the only living beings feeling this emotion? Can love be explained by some chemical reactions in our brains? Is love just a trick of nature or is love some kind of higher feeling? We do not have definite answers to any of these questions, nevertheless, neuroscience, behavioral science and others have provided us with some, at least partial answers. We know today a great deal more than ever before about what is happening in the brain when we are madly in love. We understand why our hearts beat faster when we see the person we love, we know why we sweat and why we feel anxious when the loved one is away from us, and we have some ideas about how feelings of attachment form in the brain. This book guides you through the complicated labyrinth of genes, molecules and brain cells that are involved in the feelings of love, attachment, affection, and also simple sexual reproduction."--Provided by publisher Foreword 7 Acknowledgments 9 About the Book 10 Contents 12 About the Author 14 Chapter 1: Introduction 15 Chapter 2: Two Is Better Than One 17 Chapter 3: Escherichia coli: Do Bacteria Get It On? 23 Chapter 4: Sugar-Smelling Amoebas 27 Chapter 5: Moths in Search of Love 34 Chapter 6: Wild Bull and Placid Ox 42 Chapter 7: Beware, an Elephant in the Musth 54 Chapter 8: Crocodile Brain 62 Chapter 9: Why Do Only Male Deer Have Antlers? 71 Chapter 10: Of Bees and Flowers 81 Chapter 11: After-Dark Secrets of Nemo’s Parents 87 Chapter 12: Octopuses: Lonely Cannibals 96 Chapter 13: Graceful Swan: A Symbol of Love 103 Chapter 14: Gosling Following Their Mothers 113 Chapter 15: Depraved Hooligan Penguins 123 Chapter 16: Belligerent Elephant Seal Landlords 130 Chapter 17: Kinky Giraffes 139 Chapter 18: Dik-Dik: A Faithful Dwarf Antelope 147 Chapter 19: Love in the World of Voles 157 Chapter 20: Are There Romeo and Juliette Among Chimpanzees? 164 Chapter 21: Emphatic Rats 173 Chapter 22: Brain in Love 179 Chapter 23: Man and Woman Madly in Love 188 Chapter 24: What Is Love? 197 Further Reading 203 Index 213