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Women's Attractiveness Judged by Software

Roland Piquepaille writes "According to Haaretz, an Israeli team of computer scientists has developed software that ranks facial attractiveness of women. Instead of identifying basic facial characteristics, this software has been designed to make aesthetic judgments — after training. The lead researcher said this program 'constitutes a substantial advance in the development of artificial intelligence.' It is interesting to note that the researchers focused on women only. Apparently, men' faces are more difficult to grade."

348 comments

  1. Original Paper & Obvious Criticisms by eldavojohn · · Score: 5, Insightful
    I believe the the original paper can be found here from Dec of 2007.

    There are some obvious criticisms:

    In the first stage, 30 human participants were asked to rate from 1-7 the beauty of several dozen pictures. For a masters project (which this was), that's a decent sample size. For research and practice, I do not think that will suffice.

    Second, this was done using eigenalysis and principle component analysis. While that's interesting, I have not always found that to be a great approach. Five or six years ago, they were all the rage although I cannot really find anything fruitful that has come from applying this to human faces. This also means that they cannot generate the 'most beautiful' face but if they did, it would simply be the composition of all their eigenvectors (in this case, ghostly looking images of faces) into one representing the highest scoring beauty.

    The lead researcher said this program 'constitutes a substantial advance in the development of artificial intelligence.' Having taken several AI, computer vision & machine learning courses, I don't find this to be at all substantial. An interesting masters project for sure, but several years ago I saw people doing the same things at local universities with the same results.

    Why don't they tell us how this scored some celebrities from around the world like say Iman Abdulmajid, Zsa Zsa Gabor & Angelina Jolie? I have a feeling that their system is over-trained and would perform poorly in real life. Facial beauty requires imagination and this system was hand trained on a hundred points. I don't think that's enough but I wish they would have published more results to either prove or disprove my criticisms.
    --
    My work here is dung.
    1. Re:Original Paper & Obvious Criticisms by Dachannien · · Score: 1

      Really, identification and characterization of facial features is probably the more interesting (now, anyway) part of this project. Once you figure out how to characterize those features, you can just apply and train a feed-forward neural network based on your training set (decades-old technology now), and Bob's your uncle.

    2. Re:Original Paper & Obvious Criticisms by coren2000 · · Score: 5, Funny

      Out of 7!!! Who the #$%! ever said "Oh that chick is a 7, I need to do her now!"
      Software should conform to the normal 10pt ranking scale damnit!

    3. Re:Original Paper & Obvious Criticisms by spun · · Score: 5, Funny

      Out of 7!!! Who the #$%! ever said "Oh that chick is a 7, I need to do her now!"
      Software should conform to the normal 10pt ranking scale damnit! This is Slashdot. A seven is more than most of us can ever hope for.

      "I've never done a ten, but I did five twos in one night!"
      --George Carlin
      --
      - None can love freedom heartily, but good men; the rest love not freedom, but license. -- John Milton
    4. Re:Original Paper & Obvious Criticisms by Bombula · · Score: 2, Interesting
      I participated in a psych lab as an undergrad about 10 years ago where the masters students were doing some project like this. We had to rank pictures of women's faces in order of most to least beautiful/attractive. Just faces, black and white against a black bakground, no other context - not even neck. What stood to me was that afterward, when they explained the results, they showed that some astounding percentage of participants - something like 97% - ranked the pictures in identical order. I think there were around 30 faces. There was a very high level of agreement among people over what is and isn't beautiful.

      Also noteworthy was that none of the top faces were celebrities. Oh, and the top face was absolutely breathtaking. I mean impossibly beautiful. Several times over the years I've poked around on the internet trying to find it. I remember at the time suspecting it was photoshopped to be perfectly symmetrical, but it was more than that. This face was otherworldly - and to have such an astonishingly perfect face not belong to a celebrity? Weird. Could be some model I'm just unaware of though I guess.

      --
      A-Bomb
    5. Re:Original Paper & Obvious Criticisms by Gat0r30y · · Score: 1

      I for one would propose the area code system of ranking... I'll explain

      1st number (1-10 scale) facial beauty.
      2nd number (binary choice) 1 (would hit that) 0 (wouldn't hit that)
      3rd number (1-10 scale) body.

      Here's to the 919's out there!

      --
      Prediction: The real iPhone killer is going to be sex robots from Japan. Think about it.
    6. Re:Original Paper & Obvious Criticisms by coren2000 · · Score: 2, Funny

      Call 911, there is a fire in my pants.

    7. Re:Original Paper & Obvious Criticisms by Metasquares · · Score: 1

      The Eigenface people have been doing this stuff for years. I don't see any significant advance in AI, either; it sounds like they're just doing regression, possibly coupled with feature extraction.

    8. Re:Original Paper & Obvious Criticisms by Foolicious · · Score: 1

      You are indeed losing your edge to put Zsa Zsa into any sort of beauty list. Of course, my very statement proves the ridiculousness of beauty matching -- it's too hard to agree on beauty to get any sort of realistic outcome.

      --
      Please don't use "umm" or "err" or "erm".
    9. Re:Original Paper & Obvious Criticisms by bennomatic · · Score: 1

      What about other things?

      - From a distance: posture, poise, style, confidence - Up close: eye contact, voice, breath, apparent health - Once you get to know him/her: personality, humor, wit, intelligence, neuroticism, sanity, sex drive, morals, maturity, compassion

      I think that your second metric, the binary would/wouldn't-do option is only necessary as a personal marker; it could be implied by the other numbers, if you're too lazy to query your database with more than a couple of parameters: select * from potential_partners where (LIST PARAMETERS AND MINIMUM VALUES HERE) order by humor,sanity;

      --
      The CB App. What's your 20?
    10. Re:Original Paper & Obvious Criticisms by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
    11. Re:Original Paper & Obvious Criticisms by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Apparently, mens' faces are more difficult to grade.


      on the contrary, male faces are easy to gauge for a guy... they are all ugly with no need to differentiate.

      it is pretty clear the decision maker scientists are male, which is why they chose female subjects.
    12. Re:Original Paper & Obvious Criticisms by Gat0r30y · · Score: 1

      the binary would/wouldn't-do option is only necessary as a personal marker; it could be implied by the other numbers Not necessarily, I've had 313 situations, inducing significant consumption of beverages, and leading to very frightening mornings!
      --
      Prediction: The real iPhone killer is going to be sex robots from Japan. Think about it.
    13. Re:Original Paper & Obvious Criticisms by hobbit · · Score: 1
      --
      "Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools, because they have to say something" - Plato
    14. Re:Original Paper & Obvious Criticisms by maxume · · Score: 1

      No guy spends any time rating chicks that he won't do. So if there wasn't a 0, any chick that you wouldn't do would be a 1, and everything above that would be used to sort them into the order that you would do them if given the opportunity to choose.

      --
      Nerd rage is the funniest rage.
    15. Re:Original Paper & Obvious Criticisms by JSG · · Score: 1

      >In the first stage, 30 human participants were asked to rate from 1-7 the beauty of several dozen pictures.
      >>For a masters project (which this was), that's a decent sample size. For research and practice, I do not think that will suffice.

      Many moons ago I studied maths and stats. As far as I can remember a decent sample size for a normal population is 30 but is such a subjective thing as "beauty" open to this sort of analysis.

      Personally speaking, I think that all they have done is shown that the particular 30 people that participated preferred {whatever they preferred} ... and now I have actually read the article: What a pile of cobblers. I can only hope it does not do justice to the quality of the research, however on the off chance that it does then I hope that no-one takes this seriously:

      "Our software allows the computer to complete a much more complex task of esthetic judgment, which humans cannot define exactly how they do it. Esthetic judgment is linked to sentiment and more abstract considerations, but now we have made the computer do it. This constitutes a substantial advance in the development of artificial intelligence."

      Hmm, fancy - and as it turns out there are more than 30 varieties of esthetic judgment. Most humans that I know will not give a flying wotsit about "how they do it" they will rely on things such as pheromonal response, blood rushing to parts of the body etc. Analyze that, bearing in mind that staring at a picture and giving a response to a questionnaire is not the same as a hard on (or feminine equivalent - I'm not an expert, I lurk on /.)

      Oh, and I don't fancy the bird in the piccy at the head of the article - should I? I probably should being a WASP - ooo she's blonde and has such a lovely smile.

      Please, someone either post some news or tell me why my diatribe is bollocks.

    16. Re:Original Paper & Obvious Criticisms by coaxial · · Score: 2, Interesting
      I do research in collaborative filtering, which is essentially what this is.

      In the first stage, 30 human participants were asked to rate from 1-7 the beauty of several dozen pictures.

      For a masters project (which this was), that's a decent sample size. For research and practice, I do not think that will suffice. Why don't they tell us how this scored some celebrities from around the world like say Iman Abdulmajid, Zsa Zsa Gabor & Angelina Jolie? I have a feeling that their system is over-trained and would perform poorly in real life. Facial beauty requires imagination and this system was hand trained on a hundred points. I don't think that's enough but I wish they would have published more results to either prove or disprove my criticisms.

      The number of participants in user studies are usually pretty low. A 30 person sample size is actually pretty good. It would have been better if the number of participants exceeded the number of items being rated though. That would have made this project better. A simple case would simply have been to enlist a bunch of undergrads from some classes. Double bonus points if he got their participation in the project mandatory. That's a common technique in psych departments to get subjects.

      I can tell you why they didn't use celebrities. It's completely irrelevant. First off the training data consisted of 91 caucasian (i.e. european descent, i.e. "white") women. Any results with Iman would be completely spurious since she's african (i.e. "black"). Non-whites simply don't exist in the world of machine rater. Her rating would be dependent on what weights would be assigned to skin and hair color. I would suspect that since her skin color lies outside the range of what society defines as "white," this extreme variance would either strong rate her as attractive or unattractive. Not in the middle. But as I said, it doesn't matter since she's not of the population the training set samples. Second, the faces used in the study are all neutral expression, full frontal, under controlled lighting with no makeup and jewelry. Try finding any celebrity photo like that. Third, what is the point of using celebrities? What does that give you that a random sample doesn't? The only reason why I would think that you would mention celebrities is that you believe that somehow they represent a population of highly attractive people. That's a false premise. There are plenty of unattractive celebrities, and there's celebrities that are allegedly attractive but really aren't. Case in point: Angelina Jolie. I find her absolutely hideous. She is the ugliest woman that the media tries desperately to convince me that is attractive. Sorry. No. On the likert used in this study, she's a 2. 3 at best. Now even if I am a freak, and you're implicit assertion that celebrities have above average attractiveness even under controlled conditions, what's the point of using that for testing? The system would need to learn nothing to test well on that data set. Hell, this would be all you'd need to perform well:
      int ratePhoto(Photo *p) { return 7; }
      Not very interesting is it?

      You're also assuming that there is some sort of objective analysis here, and there clearly isn't. All you can do is measure how the system performed to the human judges. In this case, the system. The system had a Pearson's correlation of .82 with the human judges. This corresponds to a MSE of .39, which is very good. In fact it's significantly better than the previous study this work appears to be based on, which only achieved a correlation of .6 on a similar dataset. So there goes you're argument that this isn't noteworthy.

      This leads us to the discussion of why they only used a 91 image dataset. First off you're limited to what data sets are available. These datasets have apparently been used repeatedly throughout the community so apparently they're a standard set for eva

    17. Re:Original Paper & Obvious Criticisms by Bender0x7D1 · · Score: 1

      Actually, it makes a lot of sense. You want an odd number of values so you can allow for a "neutral". For example: "The person is not attractive or repulsive". Then you can have 3 "levels" of attractiveness and repulsiveness: slightly, somewhat, very.

      --
      Reading code is like reading the dictionary - you have to read half of it before you can go back and understand it.
    18. Re:Original Paper & Obvious Criticisms by PDXDuck · · Score: 1

      But my scale goes to eleven.

    19. Re:Original Paper & Obvious Criticisms by jamesh · · Score: 1

      Out of 7!!! Who the #$%! ever said "Oh that chick is a 7, I need to do her now!"

      This is slashdot. I would wager that the minimum "i'd do her" score is probably less than 7, even on a 10 point scale.

    20. Re:Original Paper & Obvious Criticisms by zenkonami · · Score: 1

      This is Slashdot. A seven is more than most of us can ever hope for. Mine's a perfect 10 =)

      No, really. No, just wait a sec...she's here somewhere, I'll show you. I promise...just one second, while I...guys?

      --

      Do You Experiment?
    21. Re:Original Paper & Obvious Criticisms by fractoid · · Score: 1

      This also means that they cannot generate the 'most beautiful' face but if they did, it would simply be the composition of all their eigenvectors (in this case, ghostly looking images of faces) into one representing the highest scoring beauty. What's to say that this doesn't work? I seem to recall reading that averaged faces tend to be attractive, even if the most attractive faces aren't average (probably due to some hardwiring in the brain to seek genetic diversity).
      --
      Rampant carbon sequestration destroyed the Dinosaurs' tropical paradise. I'm here to help repair the damage.
    22. Re:Original Paper & Obvious Criticisms by rubycodez · · Score: 1

      did she deflate?

    23. Re:Original Paper & Obvious Criticisms by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      This is Slashdot. A seven is more than most of us can ever hope for.
      True that, especially if that's a Seven of Nine. (* unless your name is CleverNickName)
    24. Re:Original Paper & Obvious Criticisms by laejoh · · Score: 0

      This is Slashdot. A seven is more than most of us can ever hope for.

      Speak for yourself, I'm going for 11! That's one more than 10!

    25. Re:Original Paper & Obvious Criticisms by spun · · Score: 1

      But why don't you make ten the highest number, and go for that?

      --
      - None can love freedom heartily, but good men; the rest love not freedom, but license. -- John Milton
    26. Re:Original Paper & Obvious Criticisms by laejoh · · Score: 0

      [pause] Mine go to eleven.

    27. Re:Original Paper & Obvious Criticisms by MrJerryNormandinSir · · Score: 1

      I don't need software for this. I was born with a piece of hardware that is very accurate at detecting cute-hot women!

    28. Re:Original Paper & Obvious Criticisms by Iron+Condor · · Score: 1

      Urgh - thanks for the link. There's so much wackyness in there, I don't even know where to begin.

      They note, for example, that the machine rates closer to the average than any one of the humans. Which of course was the task given to the machine: to find an average. Which of course was NOT the task given to any of the human raters. They were supposed to find their own rating, not what they thought the average of the other raters would find.

      And now comes the fun question: what fraction of the original 30 images do you suppose were of black women? And what does this tell us about any algorithm that rates anything on "beauty"? And about the programmers?

      --
      We're all born with nothing.
      If you die in debt, you're ahead.
    29. Re:Original Paper & Obvious Criticisms by xmod2 · · Score: 1
  2. Wrong Metric! by 222 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    "Apparently, men' faces are more difficult to grade."

    Or perhaps their bank accounts are easier to derive a "value" from!

    I kid, I kid. I think.

    1. Re:Wrong Metric! by The+Ancients · · Score: 5, Funny

      If I had mod points I'd mod you '+1 divorced'

    2. Re:Wrong Metric! by Sciros · · Score: 1

      Yah and that ain't all you can measure.

      Speaking of which that goes for boobs, too. I also wonder if this one metric would lead to performance as good as what the research in TFA managed.

      --
      I like basketball!!1!
    3. Re:Wrong Metric! by CowboyNealOption · · Score: 1

      Actually the programmers were confused because all men were ranked as "ugly" or "slightly less ugly", which in fact turns out to be correct.

    4. Re:Wrong Metric! by CheshireCatCO · · Score: 1

      Actually, there's a fair amount of biological truth to that. Females of many species (women, in particular) have evolved to look for a mate who can provide for offspring while the males have evolved to make sure that they display their strengths in this area. A lot of the behaviors in humans that are associated with this aren't even conscious acts, but they're not hard to find.

      (And, yes, I know that there is variation between people and other factors can outweigh the above, or even all of what you'd think evolution would have taught us to do. These are overall trends, not blueprints for individual relationships. Also note that I'm not assigning any particular value to these behaviors.)

    5. Re:Wrong Metric! by mauthbaux · · Score: 1

      As I understand it, the attractiveness of a male is determined at least partially by what time of the month it is when he is being viewed.

      I'm far too lazy to look up the study, but as I remember it, some programmers designed a program where you could adjust the physical and facial features of an on-screen avatar using a couple of dials. Participants in the study were told to adjust the dials until they had made the most attractive person they could. For the guys, the results were consistent across the board, minimal amounts of deviation from average. On the other hand, the women had results all across the spectrum (height was the only consistent characteristic, taller was better). This confused the researchers, so they had the same group of women come back in 2 weeks and redo the test. Surprisingly, the avatar a woman found most attractive was totally different than the one she had chosen earlier. After repeating this a couple of times, they found that what she was attracted to had a lot to do with whether or not she was ovulating.

      So, if a girl is ovulating, she will find the scruffy, pickup-truck driving, impulsive jerk to be her ideal sexual fantasy. A week later, she wants the clean-shaven office worker in the suit.

      Again, take this with a grain of salt, as I assume absolutely no liability for the accuracy of what I've written here; and even less responsibility for how you interpret it.

      --
      "Operating systems suck: you're better off using only the BIOS" --trainsaw.com
  3. Not quite by calebt3 · · Score: 3, Funny

    Apparently, men' faces are more difficult to grade. Or men are not good at identifying another man as attractive when they are straight.
    1. Re:Not quite by oldhack · · Score: 1

      Yes, the guys should look at the pics only when they are in homo mode.

      --
      Fuck systemd. Fuck Redhat. Fuck Soylent, too. Wait, scratch the last one.
    2. Re:Not quite by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I was going to say "and not drunk", but the first word that sprang to mind to describe that state was... straight.

      D'oh.

    3. Re:Not quite by Mikkeles · · Score: 1
      Apparently, men' faces are more difficult to grade.

      That's because their major asset is usually covered by clothing.

      --
      Great minds think alike; fools seldom differ.
    4. Re:Not quite by youngdev · · Score: 1

      I think this is wrong. I am straight and I can tell when a man is attractive or not. Unfortunately, I am apparently the only attractive man on the planet.

  4. requires external criteria by jollyreaper · · Score: 4, Insightful

    "Apparently, men' faces are more difficult to grade." That's because male attractiveness is graded on a curve, the curve set by wealth, power, and social position. Remove those factors, flattening the curve, and the Cuban pool boy will be ranked at the top once more.
    --
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    Sell the spice to CHOAM
    This Mahdi took Shaddam's Throne
    1. Re:requires external criteria by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Interesting

      According to some research, people tend to prefer their own race's looks, so Cubans are likely to find cuban pool boys more compelling than Swedes. Obviously there are exceptions for exceptional beauties of both sexes. But, this is a general trend. For instance, I have seen a total of one Indian guy I found hot and one I found attractive. I have dealt with a lot of Indians. I also don't tend to find latinos compelling, but there are always exceptions. I like young white guys the most, and this is likely due to genetics. One study found that people are better at differentiating between the facial features of their racial group. This can be due to increased day-to-day exposure to those features, but also can be due to genes.

    2. Re:requires external criteria by jollyreaper · · Score: 4, Interesting

      According to some research, people tend to prefer their own race's looks, so Cubans are likely to find cuban pool boys more compelling than Swedes. Obviously there are exceptions for exceptional beauties of both sexes. But, this is a general trend. For instance, I have seen a total of one Indian guy I found hot and one I found attractive. I have dealt with a lot of Indians. I also don't tend to find latinos compelling, but there are always exceptions. I like young white guys the most, and this is likely due to genetics. One study found that people are better at differentiating between the facial features of their racial group. This can be due to increased day-to-day exposure to those features, but also can be due to genes. This can go both ways. While there is a degree of comfort for selecting mates within one's own racial subgroup, there's also a trend towards being attracted to exotics, i.e. those outside of the subgroup. This sort of desire has been postulated as an evolutionary adaptation to keep genes from becoming stagnant. I am not sure if this still in the realm of speculation or if there has been any experimental verification. Of course, culture can also completely fuck up a given subject's appreciation of beauty. Just look at how standard African features have been looked down upon in females. Look at any black couple on television and you'll see that the man may have markedly pronounced African features but the women will always be of mixed race, skin tending towards coffee color but facial features all comfortably Caucasian. I very much doubt this is by chance.
      --
      Kwisatz Haderach
      Sell the spice to CHOAM
      This Mahdi took Shaddam's Throne
    3. Re:requires external criteria by value_added · · Score: 3, Interesting

      That's because male attractiveness is graded on a curve, the curve set by wealth, power, and social position.

      I'm not an expert of male attractiveness, nor do I play one on Slashdot, but I imagine similar factors (absence of damage, proportionality of features, symmetry on the vertical plane, etc.) would play a similar enough role. That said, there have been plenty of studies showing that the "attractiveness" of a male's face corresponds to the menstrual cycle of the female: during ovulation, the "rugged and handsome" look is preferrable to "nice and well-shaved" whereas the inverse is generally true at other times.

      As for "wealthy and powerful", I guess that could similarly depend on the financial and social status of the female. I prefer to consider it a truism in the same way that in the wild, it's typically the biggest, strongest, or the one with the most goodies that gets the opportunity to mate.

      A side note for anyone cherishing the notion that everything is relative or personal, and there can be no standard of attractiveness. Even across disparate cultures where such things can run into the extremes, the attractiveness value of facial symmetry, to take one example, remains universal. I remember a PBS program on the subject years back that examined the faces of famous movie stars. Turns out by taking a ruler to the face of someone like Brad Pitt or Angelina Jolie, you'll discover both have nearly perfectly symmetrical faces. I imagine one could conclude there's some form of Golden Ratio that applies, particularly to body shapes like those of Angeline Jolie. ;-)

    4. Re:requires external criteria by Cosmic+AC · · Score: 1

      I am not sure if this still in the realm of speculation or if there has been any experimental verification It's speculation. Your speculation.

      Of course, culture can also completely fuck up a given subject's appreciation of beauty. Just look at how standard African features have been looked down upon in females When someone says something is due to "culture", they're usually making something up. Culture is one one of those hard-to-isolate variables that people in the "softer sciences" can always point to to avoid biological explanations for something. What if white men just don't find black women that attractive? Do you really think sexual attraction is that fickle? If "society" said tomorrow that 85 year-old women were hot, would you start fantasizing about them? I don't think so.
    5. Re:requires external criteria by droopycom · · Score: 1

      Just look at how standard African features have been looked down upon in females. Look at any black couple on television and you'll see that the man may have markedly pronounced African features but the women will always be of mixed race, skin tending towards coffee color but facial features all comfortably Caucasian. I very much doubt this is by chance. And what is a "standard" African feature exactly ?

      Whats else are you going to look for next? Standard Jewish features? Or maybe standard Arabic Features ?

      Slippery slope you are on....

    6. Re:requires external criteria by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      "While there is a degree of comfort for selecting mates within one's own racial subgroup, there's also a trend towards being attracted to exotics, i.e. those outside of the subgroup."

      Finally, someone has explained, in a clear way, why white guys love Japanese schoolgirls - But please, is there an answer for "furries"?

      No, really, I want an answer.......

    7. Re:requires external criteria by thanatos_x · · Score: 1

      There may be some truth to what you say, I've never looked at any studies confirming or denying this... however there are obvious exceptions to this. A fair number of men I know (Caucasian) have an abnormally large draw toward asian women. Caucasian women have a preference towards those with a Mediterranean heritage if media is to be believed (the dark part of tall, dark and handsome).

      If I had to wager a guess, it might be because certain characteristics are preferred for a given sex. Men are generally more physically attractive if they're tall, well built/broad shouldered, defined facial features - powerful in some sense. Certain races exhibit these traits more often than others. Conversely with women a different subset of features is preferred, often fairly different from those that are preferred for men.

      Culture has a lot to do with determining beauty, but some things are fairly universal (tall men are more handsome), so races with higher average heights are probably perceived to have more attractive males, all else equal. On an interesting note studies have found that within the US, male preference for females varies depending on economic conditions. During poor economic times, the average weight of a model increases, during good times we prefer skinnier models.

      --
      I am not an expert. If I am misled in something, please correct me.
    8. Re:requires external criteria by zippthorne · · Score: 1

      The dark part of tall dark and handsome is because of the inversion of indoor-outdoor work habits: "common laborers" now work inside, becoming pasty white, while the idle rich have the time to spend luxuriating on the beach.

      In other words, it's a physical indicator of bank account levels.

      --
      Can you be Even More Awesome?!
    9. Re:requires external criteria by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
      This can go both ways. While there is a degree of comfort for selecting mates within one's own racial subgroup, there's also a trend towards being attracted to exotics, i.e. those outside of the subgroup. This sort of desire has been postulated as an evolutionary adaptation to keep genes from becoming stagnant. I am not sure if this still in the realm of speculation or if there has been any experimental verification.

      Yes. For instance, it has been shown that males tend to prefer blondes in random sampling of pictures ; but if you propose a set of pictures with all blondes but one brunette, then they tend to prefer the brunette.

      Also men tend to be 10% darker in skin than woman, that's might be why being blonde is associated to feminity, while being brune is associated to manhood (hello Swedish models, hello Latino lovers). For instance not so many top male actors are blonde.

    10. Re:requires external criteria by Jedi+Alec · · Score: 1

      And what is a "standard" African feature exactly ?

      Let's just say it involves, at the very least, 3 bass guitars.

      --

      People replying to my sig annoy me. That's why I change it all the time.
    11. Re:requires external criteria by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      And what is a "standard" African feature exactly ? The banana in his pocket?
    12. Re:requires external criteria by Doctor+Faustus · · Score: 1

      According to some research, people tend to prefer their own race's looks
      Alternately, people like people who specifically look like people they grew up around (who are usually related, so look like them). I'm not sure if it's original to him, but I've been reading Jared Diamond's The Third Chimpanzee, and he suggested that was actually *why* there are ethnic differences in appearance. This was a full chapter or two of the book, but his examples were interesting.

      Now, I think this may actually be kinda backwards. I think it's not so much that people are attracted to people who look like them, but that we tend to think people who don't look like us aren't going to be interested in us. For instance, I would have no problem dating a black woman, but it almost never occurs to me that one might be interested unless she's specifically said she usually dates white men.

      I have seen a total of one Indian guy I found hot and one I found attractive. I have dealt with a lot of Indians.
      I think Indian men don't usually fit American tastes well. Indian women, on the other hand, come off as exotic (and it doesn't hurt that they're usually in better shape than Americans -- I think it may have something to do with yoga, because the only exceptions I've known have been Catholic).

    13. Re:requires external criteria by cthulhu11 · · Score: 1

      That's because male attractiveness is graded on a curve, the curve set by wealth, power, and social position. Nope. Male attractiveness is *heavily* weighted by height. It takes substantial wealth or celebrity (are there any poor celebrities?) to override this. I see this all the time. Guys who are total slobs, yet women get all sparkly and gooey as they throw themselves at them because they're 6'5". Look at *any* dating site and notice what information is right up top: age and height. Anything that would actually correlate with being a good life partner is way down on the list and rarely read.

    14. Re:requires external criteria by Maxo-Texas · · Score: 1

      I have an old college friend.

      She insisted on a man who was attractive and wealthy (taller wasn't an issue since she was about 5'4").

      She is still single.

      There are very few attractive and wealthy men and they tend to pick women more attractive than my friend.

      --
      She was like chocolate when she drank... semi-sweet at first and then increasingly bitter.
  5. Women are from Venus by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Women less complicated than men, never!

  6. Woman scientists will retaliate... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

    ...and generate a manhood-size-prediction algorithm.

    1. Re:Woman scientists will retaliate... by Tablizer · · Score: 1

      ...and generate a manhood-size-prediction algorithm.

      Their algorithm is much simpler:

          function rankGuy(guy)
          rank = guy.bankAccountAmount / richestDudeBankAmt;
          return(rank);
          end;

    2. Re:Woman scientists will retaliate... by Maxo-Texas · · Score: 1

      Recently lost a girl to just this. Was extremely painful-- loved me to death, he was older, we had great sex-- I truly felt we had a spiritual connection.

      He was old... and shorter.. and balding.. and ... wealthy.. and retired... and had a 100 acre ranch.. and a F250.. and horses... and he could spend every afternoon hanging out with her at work and doing little work chores for her. After 9 months, she told me about him and tried to keep both of us.

      After three very painful months, I cut off all contact with her. She called me for phone sex two weeks AFTER I cut things off-- apparently he is just not a rocket in the sack and she would have loved to keep sneaking off to see me... while marrying him... after he was "divorcing" his ex-wife to marry her while telling her he was no longer on speaking terms with my ex after his wife got a look at the cell phone bill.

      He had stupidly copied his wife on an email before the affair started... and she had stupidly linked her main account to a poetry account I set up. So now he is getting divorced for real. And she still found a stupid pretext to contact me last week.

      The only thing I have seen that works is to be a jealous spouse and really check up on them. My friends who do this have vaguely unhappy but surviving marriages while those who do not have either suffered through affairs or ended up with divorces after 8-10 years. Trust but verify. If I had been doing that- I would have caught him 1-2 months in and driven him off.

      --
      She was like chocolate when she drank... semi-sweet at first and then increasingly bitter.
    3. Re:Woman scientists will retaliate... by NealokNYU · · Score: 1

      Umm... This is way off topic, so we are probably going to get modded down, but I'm curious as to that last point. You say you would have driven him off? Am I crazy that I think you misplacing that wish?

      If she is nurturing a relationship with someone else, it could certainly have been prevented as you say, but would you want to? Successful relationships are built on trust and verification, perhaps, but not trust and enforcement. I mean, what are the fundamental underpinnings of the people involved where spying is necessary? It seems to me that the moment you have something to drive off, you already have a problem.

      Your ex's inclination to cheat was merely satisfied by this guy. It was hardly his responsbility to make sure you stayed with your girlfriend; that was HER call. SHE made the agreement with you at some point not to take up with other dudes. You say there were no issues in your situation, but if she is willing to violate her integrity with you, does that not count as an issue?

    4. Re:Woman scientists will retaliate... by Ilan+Volow · · Score: 1

      Algorithms to detect big-vs-little endian have been around for some time. It should be easy to find out who has the least significant bits.

      --
      Ergonomica Auctorita Illico!
    5. Re:Woman scientists will retaliate... by profplump · · Score: 1

      Trust is antithetical to verification. It may be wise to place limits on your trust, and to take action to verify compliance when that those limits are exceeded. And finding that verification routinely falls one way or the other, you may even adjust the limits of your trust accordingly. But don't pretend that verification is part of trust -- verification is an action you take when you don't trust the presumed analysis of a situation.

      You're disappointed that your level of trust was too high. And you may even be wise to reduce your level of trust in the future. But realize that you're no longer trusting as soon as you require verification.

    6. Re:Woman scientists will retaliate... by Maxo-Texas · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Your theory sounds lovely-- I'm just saying what I've seen in practice.

      It takes time to build a friendship, then a sexual interest, then a romantic relationship-- the guys I know who have stable relationships do not let their women hang around alone with other men. When their feelers go up they chase the guy off- usually just by saying very mildly that they are not comfortable with the situation.

      In my case, they had a business relationship first.. then started meeting for lunch-- then I stopped being copied on emails-- then his wife stopped being copied on emails-- then they acknowledged something deeper than friendship (this is about 5 months in-- like I said, I got to read every email from both of them once I stopped the blind trust thing), then they started having sex-- then she had some work conferences (i.e. trips to his ranch)-- (now we are at 7 months)-- then they had a full out affair- he dropped hundreds if not thousands on jewelry, flowers, dinners and THEN he found out about me (she told him there was no one else-- he was married so there was no conflict right away) -- THEN she fought him for three months to keep both of us-- finally she told me and tried to keep both of us but as you would imagine, she was 60% him / 40% me and sliding towards him by then or else she would have cut him off instead of trying to keep both of us.

      You are right- we are all individuals who control our own destinies and we have no strong control others. But it take time to slide from loving someone to being willing to lie and betray them. If you catch them early, then you can stop things before they are too far along.

      If he had not been so damn wealthy I do not think it would have been an issue. It was like the second sentence out of her mouth when she broke the news to me. The universe had sent a wealthy man to take care of her. It was right after she said crying that she had had an affair with someone and she didn't want to lose me.

      And I make a good income and wasn't stingy on sharing it and had proposed. She was gloriously happy while at the same time she was being a complete skank. She and he started out with the idea that it would be a discrete little side thing that they would do during the day and "no one would get hurt". His family is hurt... I'm torn all to hell... his wife is hurt. The two of them lied to everyone. I damn near had a nervous breakdown over it because there was almost no warning. I knew she was under stress and consoled her and she told me it was about her business- I trusted her completely at that point. The stress was apparently really that she was fighting with him to keep it all secret and under wraps.

      I wouldn't be posting but she tried to open up contact with me again last week after I had successfully ended contact with her for several weeks and that attempt opened up all the pain again.

      --
      She was like chocolate when she drank... semi-sweet at first and then increasingly bitter.
    7. Re:Woman scientists will retaliate... by Maxo-Texas · · Score: 1

      And there is the nub. After what she did, I am not sure I will ever be able trust a new person again. It was a monstrous betrayal made even worse because she really did love me-- still does. She was still mourning losing me and trying to keep me but still wanted him more when I broke things off. But I could clearly see that given another six months, then she would have been able to completely connect to him and disconnect from me and then she would have cut things off. So why go through that death march.

      But addressing your point- how can I ever trust again? I still would trust her with my money-- just not with my heart and soul. And I have seen that trusting allows things to get out of hand before you find out about them. Meanwhile, my friend married much longer will happily tell his wife in front of every-- I love you and trust you completely-- and I will keep checking up on you to keep things that way. And to be honest- I get the feeling that she likes that he does check up on her. There must be an art to doing it lightly enough to matter but doesn't weigh too heavily on the relationship.

      The same thing applies to myself-- I don't trust myself. If/when I find a relationship again, I won't be hanging out alone with other women either-- because the same thing could happen to me (and it is part of why billy graham always makes sure a male aid enters rooms before him so he will never be alone with a female-- avoid the temptation in the first place.)

      --
      She was like chocolate when she drank... semi-sweet at first and then increasingly bitter.
    8. Re:Woman scientists will retaliate... by Lost+Engineer · · Score: 1

      He was old... and shorter.. and balding.. and ... wealthy.. and retired... and had a 100 acre ranch.. and a F250.. and horses... Only in Texas does the rich guy in town drive an F250 and a horse.
    9. Re:Woman scientists will retaliate... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      They're use pictures of faces, not cars.

    10. Re:Woman scientists will retaliate... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Stay away, man, stay far away. She's managed to manipulate you in the past, and will keep trying to get back with you for longer than you will believe possible.

      I've got a psycho ex g/f who pings me every year or two, more than five years after the fact. She thought I was going to take care of her. She lied to me, manipulated me, you name it. When I finally dumped her she thought the sky had fallen, and has still never really got her head around the idea that there's at least one person in the world who sees right through her.

      Life is too short, and there are way too many good, intelligent, beautiful women out there, to waste a moment of your time on a loser like her.

    11. Re:Woman scientists will retaliate... by glittalogik · · Score: 2, Interesting

      First off, I'm really sorry you've had to go through this shit. It sucks, and I feel for you. Second, standard disclaimer: IANAwhatever, and could be wrong about all of the below.

      Unless there's something about this guy that you don't know or aren't telling us, your ex is a gold-digger and that spiritual connection you felt was you being a hopeless romantic idealist. It's easier to write off half the human population as lying, treacherous harlots than to admit that you might have been wrong about her specifically, but it'll ruin your life more than she ever could have without your help.

      Whilst I doubt your situation is unique, I can assure you it's not universal, and hopefully caution you from overextrapolating from it. Whilst I've had three partners (that I know of) cheat on me, admittedly done the same to one of them when I was much younger, and been presented with one or two opportunities to be 'the other guy' in ostensibly monogamous relationships (none of which I went through with), not a single one of those situations has never had anything to do with money.

      I'm making this worse, aren't I?

      The point is, there are more reasons for relationships beginning and ending, and for those beginnings and endings overlapping, than you can possibly keep track of without ending up not only alone, but alone with one or more A.V.O.s against your name. I'm great friends with two of those three ex-partners, and the one I don't talk to is for entirely separate reasons. Turning bitter and cynical, or paranoid and stalkerish, isn't going to help your cause.

      There's someone better than you, or me, at just about anything. If you make the game about money, and attract a partner who thinks the same thing, then there's going to be someone with more money, and you know what happens then. If you make it purely about physical attraction, there's going to be someone coming along who's taller or handsomer or cuddlier or whatever it takes to catch your significant other's eye. If you pick a specific criterion or criteria like that, you're going to lose. She might cheat on you, she might have the decency to dump you first, or she might stay faithful and spend the rest of her life quietly and unhappily imagining what could have been, but none of those sound especially appealing to me.

      This bit is going to sound like self-help wank, but the only thing you can do better than anyone else is be YOU. It's up to you to make sure that's a good thing (i.e. staying healthy, not living in Mom's basement, soaking food stains etc.). It's up to you to make sure that you're actually putting some effort into it and allowing yourself to evolve (i.e. working towards the job you want, allowing yourself creative outputs, growing past OS fanboyism). It's up to you to find someone whose tastes intersect significantly (maybe even perfectly) with what you are, and what you're happy being, and who intersects similarly with your tastes.

      Hell, I know furries who are in happy decade-old relationships; trust me, there's someone for *everyone*.

    12. Re:Woman scientists will retaliate... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Does the Maxo-Texas story hour really need to be posted with the karma bonus?

    13. Re:Woman scientists will retaliate... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Actually, I disagree that there's someone for everyone. I can honestly say I know people that I wouldn't inflict on anybody as they are (in their current state of mind) ready to be in any kind of relationship (although that didn't usually stop them from trying relationships).

      Although I agree you have to fix yourself if you are too broken to be in a relationship and I agree that nobody is gonna find someone for you that intersects you (in whatever way you want to have intersect you), it's also encumbant to you to figure out to the best of your ability if that other person is too broken to be in a relationship exactly because of the same reason (nobody else is gonna do that for you, even your friends and even their friends). More often than not, friends become co-conspirators and enablers for anti-relationship tendencies in their own friends. I've seen it before, it ain't pretty how "friends" and the other person's "friend" can appologize and enable the most atrocious behaviour just to make sure the social grease keeps sliding along without any bumps. I have to admit, I do it too, sometimes it's too hard to make waves and be the asshole.

      To me, people are just often looking for the wrong thing in a relationship. Intersecting interests are good reasons to have a friendship. And well chemical attraction, well, it just is or it isn't and as we can see, really doesn't respect relationship boundaries at times. But being in the same place in you state of readiness for the same level of relationship is really the only indicator that seems to work and it's the one that's unfortunatly the hardest one to figure out.

      I'll also add that growth is overrated in relationships too. Unless you grow together, you'll grow apart, so if you want to "grow", that's fine, but finding someone to grow with and will grow at the same rate as you will complicate the analysis, just witness all the couples that try to "recapture" their lost love when their relationship gets stale or one of the partners "out-grows" the other one.

      People wonder why arranged marriages work contrary to all the crap that people think about soul mates. It's probably because the two parties are in the same "place" and make it a point to grow together. Sometimes it seems to be just that simple.

      Just for the record, in case anyone is interested, I'm not bitter, I'm happily married (unarranged). It just took me a long long time to figure all this stuff out after wading through all the self-help wank.

    14. Re:Woman scientists will retaliate... by indiechild · · Score: 2, Informative

      You should read material by David DeAngelo. It sounds like you don't really understand attraction, or women in general. Wealth doesn't really have much to do with attraction, but power and excitement do.

      And stay away from your ex; ideally you should break off all contact. She's already demonstrated once that she will cheat, there is absolutely nothing to stop her from doing it again.

      I agree that you need to catch her early before she cheats -- but this cannot be achieved by preventing her from seeing other men or getting jealous and angry. If she's looking elsewhere, that means you're not exciting enough, i.e. boring. If her sexual and attraction needs are being met (and ideally exceeded) at home then there is no need for her to be looking elsewhere.

      Also, men outwardly displaying signs of jealousy is not a good thing, it signifies that the man is of "low social value".

      We're geeks, we're smart, we should empower ourselves by learning about this stuff rather than stumbling around in the dark.

    15. Re:Woman scientists will retaliate... by Zephyr14z · · Score: 1

      Man, something very similar just happened to me, and it sucks a whole lot. This is totally offtopic from the article, but I feel you man.

    16. Re:Woman scientists will retaliate... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Out of sheer curiosity, can I ask how old you are? And how old is your ex?

    17. Re:Woman scientists will retaliate... by Maxo-Texas · · Score: 1

      I'm sorry but I think you are being naive. She clearly chose wealth over all other factors. The guy is a dud in the sack-can't complete. I'm very good at the tantric stuff and was very attentive too. Even during the breakup she was very attracted to me.

      But he spent money like water and that was something she had never encountered in her life before. I think she really felt she could have him during the day (without destroying his marriage) and me at night (while he was with his wife) and keep all the money and toys and keep me. But she got more and more emotionally connected and then he found out about me (she says she told him- but talking to him, it seems he saw an email from me one day at her office that she left up on her browser).

      It's such a classic and cliched situation that they write songs about it. Women are attracted to wealth and you better be careful with yours. I thought I was- but I was too far away to see her during the day and that's how it started. And since then, on the cheating sites, that seems to be a very classic post.

      In a way I am lucky- at least I found out before I married her-- but in a way it was just damn unlucky. There just are not that many wealthy men to go around. He just happened to be in marriage counseling when he met mine. It might have never happened. Just damn bad luck.

      ---

      City girls just seem to find out early
      How to open doors with just a smile
      A rich old man
      And she won't have to worry
      She'll dress up all in lace and go in style

      Late at night a big old house gets lonely
      I guess ev'ry form of refuge has its price
      And it breaks her heart to think her love is
      Only given to a man with hands as cold as ice

      So she tells him she must go out for the evening
      To comfort an old friend who's feelin' down
      But he knows where she's goin' as she's leavin'
      She is headed for the cheatin' side of town

      You can't hide your lyin' eyes
      And your smile is a thin disguise
      I thought by now you'd realize
      There ain't no way to hide your lyin eyes

      On the other side of town a boy is waiting
      with fiery eyes and dreams no one could steal
      She drives on through the nice anticipating
      'Cause he makes her feel the way she used to feel

      She rushes to his arms,
      They fall together
      She whispers that it's only for awhile
      She swears that soon she'll be comin' back forever
      She pulls away and leaves him with a smile

      --
      She was like chocolate when she drank... semi-sweet at first and then increasingly bitter.
    18. Re:Woman scientists will retaliate... by gr8dude · · Score: 1
      Having read this comment, as well as your other messages in this thread, I think this could help:
    19. Re:Woman scientists will retaliate... by indiechild · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Don't be sorry. I hope I don't sound patronising or like I'm lecturing; I just wanted to share my view and thoughts on the situation.

      I don't think wealth = attraction, although wealth is often associated with high social status/value. But you don't have to be wealthy to have high social value.

      Maybe your ex really is a gold digger (and I don't mean that in a spiteful or hateful way) and wanted to be with the other guy because he lavished so much money and expenses on her. But I think it's important to realise that all that wealth means nothing... she doesn't really love him, she just loves being pampered and spoiled by him. And that definitely does not equal attraction, it only equals affection (big difference). Affection can get men sex, but only grudgingly, and in increasingly fewer spurts. It's a bit like the other guy is paying her for sex; that kind of arrangement won't stay happy or continue forever, so he's the big fool in all of this.

      Once again, I want to emphasise: wealth does not automatically mean attraction. In fact, spending lots of money on a girl is typically the way that "beta males" get women to grudgingly have sex with them. (there are exceptions of course, you can spend lots of money on a girl and still be a complete stallion and ladies man, as long as you know how attraction works)

      In any case, the one thing that is for certain is that your ex seems quite messed up emotionally and is definitely not a person you should stay in contact with. In fact, it's probably best to have no contact at all. Unless of course you want to be the guy on the side who she goes to for hot sex, but that's probably not the wisest or most ethical thing to go with.

      I'm sorry it's turned out like this, but as you say, it's good that you at least found out before you married her. I agree with the other poster, there are plenty of other wonderful women out there, just waiting to be discovered. You thought you had your special girl, but it turns out she wasn't the right one. That's life, and that's OK; you just carry on and continue your journey.

    20. Re:Woman scientists will retaliate... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Not that it's all that relevant to your personal story, which I have no opinion on other than to say sympathies to you and man, that sucks, but the phrase "guys...do not let their women..." suggests a very basic type mismatch error. Which you know, as you state roughly the same yourself. People are not possessions and for as long as it's about ownership, noone is going to be particularly happy. If you start out by looking for someone who is happy to be treated as a possession, you will wind up with someone for whom something pretty unhealthy (money, the insecure urge to be controlled...) is a primary motive. Only a very sick, childish or mercenary person would go for that whole 'the universe sent a wealthy man to take care of me!' thing you suggest. But: 'I make a good income and wasn't stingy on sharing it and had proposed', sounds a touch like the same thing?

      God knows the ownership fallacy is a common enough error, not least because it seems so much easier than the whole endless 'two people who tolerate each other' catfight that is a relationship between equals, but my experience is that the relationships that tend to last longest are those that have taken the latter approach and decided to deal with one another, warts and all. Take a good long break and heal... but IMHO ask yourself a few questions about the type of person or relationship you are after, and the type of person who would as a consequence be attracted. A lot of guys do this for a significant proportion of their lives, focus on women who are unbalanced enough to need (money, care, to feel needed, etc), and are understandably confused and bitter when the silly cow finds someone else who makes a better case, in financial or emotional terms. Worse, a similar proportion of guys also take part in the very same game of needing to be needed and are therefore equally flaky. It's amazing any relationship ever makes it past the five year mark... but they do, and in the ideal case, it is because there's some symmetry involved, both people are independent and secure enough that they could get on with life just fine on their own.

      Sorry if it sounds like I'm having a go at you on the basis of a bit of terminology. You're wounded, but you really aren't going to improve by assuming that everything is about cash - if you believe that to be true, avoid dating non-career women and women who make less than you do. Sincerely, good luck for healing and a happier future, everything glittalogik said, and possibly eventually somebody for whom bank accounts are not a major feature of the dating landscape. Posted anonymously because Slashdot is not a good place for agony-aunt drama theatre.

    21. Re:Woman scientists will retaliate... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Throw the ho out of your life brother.

      Been there. Tried doing the relationship repair thing. Got the emotional scars. Got the T-Shirt. Not worth it.

      Women like that are using you as a ladder. They get up on your back to see what they can see above you. First chance they get they're off. She's only interested in you again because she failed to get him.

      Find someone worthwhile instead.

    22. Re:Woman scientists will retaliate... by DrDrink · · Score: 1

      It's not being treated like an object. It's basic respect for the one you are with. I respect our (my wife and I) relationship, so I won't go out alone with a female. My wife respects our relationship, so she won't go out alone with a male. She won't get into trouble if she doesn't put herself in a situation that could lead to a problem and I won't do that to her either.

    23. Re:Woman scientists will retaliate... by Maxo-Texas · · Score: 1

      You sum it up well and your conclusions match mine- especially with regard to NC..

      At my age, good unattached women are rare-- pretty much widows-- the rest are pretty messed up or bad news at this point.

      Yes I was in a very good NC and in a good place emotionally and so then she broke it. Yes, she's still in love and lust with me apparently but whenever she has to make a choice she chooses him. So it's like I'm Mr. 40% and he's Mr. 60%.

      This was a very long relationship and there had never been an issue before and she had plenty of opportunities with moderately wealthy business men almost daily -- but he was seriously wealthy and unhappily married.

      --
      She was like chocolate when she drank... semi-sweet at first and then increasingly bitter.
    24. Re:Woman scientists will retaliate... by Maxo-Texas · · Score: 1

      And if you realized she was spending time with someone for bible study or politics or whatever innocent reason-- then would you respect her right to be with whoever she wants for innocent activities or would you start hanging out or even ask them to meet when you were present or not meet?

      keep in mind married preachers walk into this innocent time alone trap all the time.

      --
      She was like chocolate when she drank... semi-sweet at first and then increasingly bitter.
    25. Re:Woman scientists will retaliate... by Maxo-Texas · · Score: 1

      I just want someone that I desire as much after 9 years as the first year, someone who glows and says she loves me all over again each of the many times that I take the time to pick special gifts that show I know her, or drop by her office and leave a rose on the door, who finds me very sexually attactive, who I can have long talks about just about anything and who I feel I have a spiritual connection with...

      Oh.. I had that.

      And then she stumbled across the wealthy guy in an unhappy marriage and suddenly her favorite flowers were not as wonderful as a (apparently) $180 rose arrangement with sparklies thingy's of some kind (didn't see it- only saw the email). The meals she loved that I crafted (and I mean crafted) for her were not as appealing as the $100 lunches he took her too (well actually she wanted both). The poetry I sent her that she thrilled over didn't apparently match up to such great prose as "get your pretty ass over here" and "we had a lot of fun and did some great luvin together this weekend baby girl, didn't we?"

      Actually, she took and wanted both for a total of about 9 months and then it all went to hell for her. She said at one point, "I knew what I was doing was wrong but I couldn't stop myself." And she tried to keep us both because she had been reckless and now she was in love with both of us.

      I'm not saying all women are attracted to wealth but it is a very common meme-- let's call it the "Diamonds are a Girl's best friend" meme.

      --
      She was like chocolate when she drank... semi-sweet at first and then increasingly bitter.
    26. Re:Woman scientists will retaliate... by Doctor+Faustus · · Score: 1

      The only thing I have seen that works is to be a jealous spouse and really check up on them. My friends who do this have vaguely unhappy but surviving marriages while those who do not have either suffered through affairs or ended up with divorces after 8-10 years.
      I'm not saying this could work for you, but open marriages (whether swinging or polyamory) can work for that, too. You really want that to be from the beginning, though, not as a reaction to someone cheating.

    27. Re:Woman scientists will retaliate... by phantomfive · · Score: 1

      It takes time to build a friendship, then a sexual interest, then a romantic relationship-- the guys I know who have stable relationships do not let their women hang around alone with other men. When their feelers go up they chase the guy off- usually just by saying very mildly that they are not comfortable with the situation. If I had to guess here (because it seems like for the most part you were keeping her happy), I would say the problem was you were acting like a loyal little puppy dog, and that's when women start to wander. Chances are if she knew she would lose you for going after another guy, she never would have tried. I'm not saying you should 'have a talk' and tell her, "you know, if you wander, I will find another girl" (although if she happens to bring it up, be honest). But don't be afraid to look at other women, even go off and talk to them, then come back and put your arm around your girl to let her know that you are her's as long as she will have you. Let her be the loyal puppy dog, sometimes hold back and make her seduce you.

      The best is when each of you are holding back trying to make the other become a loyal puppy dog, then get the other to seduce them, then suddenly it all falls together in a flash of love and passion.

      And love her. Do and let her do what is best for herself. Help her be happy. That is the greatest aphrodisiac of all.
      --
      Qxe4
    28. Re:Woman scientists will retaliate... by Maxo-Texas · · Score: 1

      FYI, I know all about David DeAngelo. It is wonderful stuff when you are trying to pick up a woman. Before I got into a monogamous relationship it was great stuff for picking up women. Had the entire cocky, funny bit down pat, sharp dresser, good shoes, etc.

      But once you have bonded with the girl and both of you have fallen in love with each other, it's not so appropriate unless you want to keep a cocky, funny mask up the rest of your life. After you have a real relationship, then when you hurt you show it and they comfort you. When they hurt, you hold them and take care of them. And once they have your heart, you are going to hurt really badly if they leave so you'd best protect yourself from other males trying to take away your love.

      As others have said, you can't be everything. If you are rich, it could be a celebrity (had one girlfriend who was susceptible to even minor celebrities who she met as part of her job so I broke that off) -- you know the sort of joke about the "list of 3 celebrities you could screw and it won't count" (tho it really would of course). If you write poetry, it could be they are a jock. If you are a jock, it could be that they write poetry.

      However... I firmly believe that being wealthy and using it subtly pushes very powerful buttons in women. Some it is more direct (knew a girl once who said a man offered her $1,000 for sex and she came right there without him touching her). Others would be offended by that approach but be drawn in by lots of favors, car repairs, jewelry (oh.. this means nothing- just a gift for a friend).

      Even when falling in love the first time, people approach it sideways. There is a BIG difference between getting laid (D'Angelo) and having a successful long-term relationship. However, I would agree that the "girls want to have fun" part of his bit applies to everyone (even most guys to be honest).

      --
      She was like chocolate when she drank... semi-sweet at first and then increasingly bitter.
    29. Re:Woman scientists will retaliate... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      My friend,

      You can trust again. And when the thunderbolt hits you, you'll fall again!

      But first you've got to really understand what she did to you. She doesn't love you anymore. You've got to admit that to yourself and move on. Cut off all communication. It might make you obsessive about her at first, but slowly you'll start healing.

      I know things seem pretty bad now...I've been through a relationship that long as well. It seems like an unending hell, but you will get better! You will love again. And it will be someone much, much better.

    30. Re:Woman scientists will retaliate... by big_paul76 · · Score: 1

      "You are right- we are all individuals who control our own destinies and we have no strong control others. But it take time to slide from loving someone to being willing to lie and betray them. If you catch them early, then you can stop things before they are too far along."

      Um, well, so what?

      If your wife/gf is going to cheat on you, then the problem lies with her. Speaking as someone who has both (a) cheated, and (b) recently been tempted to cheat, but resisted the temptation, the difference between the two was the difference in (a) a dysfunctional relationship, and (b) a healthy, happy relationship.

      Adultery is a symptom, not a cause, of a breakup/divorce.

      So 'keeping an eye on your wife/gf' is a flawed approach, because if the only thing preventing your girlfriend from cheating on you is your supervision, well, then you have something fundamentally wrong between the two of you. Maybe it's you, (doubtful), maybe it's her, (seems likely in this case) but adultery is a symptom, not a cause.

      --
      The plural form of "anecdote" is "anecdotes", not "evidence".
    31. Re:Woman scientists will retaliate... by Maxo-Texas · · Score: 1

      Bigpaul,

      I've seen this play out a half dozen times in my life. I really think it is more subtle than that. Ive seen it come into a happy relationships without any warning. The cheaters never intended to create as much devastation as turned out. It was "just a little harmless flirting" or "just talking to him about work during lunch" and in one case-- bible study alone at church.

      The key thing is being alone with a person of the appropriate sex (happens to lesbians and gays too). I agree that a bad relationship makes it much more likely- but I've seen it happen to good relationships like mine was. It's results in conflicted romantic entanglement-- i.e. the spouse is in love with both. It creates the absolutely worst damage because

      a) you have no warning they are cheating-- they still love you just as much as ever, do not argue with you more than normal, still love sex with you, it's just like they slice this little part of themselves off for another person.
      b) they can't decide which one they want (mine couldn't explicitly decide- just found it much easier to find time for him as things progressed and to cut time with me as things progressed).

      --
      She was like chocolate when she drank... semi-sweet at first and then increasingly bitter.
    32. Re:Woman scientists will retaliate... by big_paul76 · · Score: 1

      Actually, at the risk of starting a very drastic flame war, your point about when the cheater genuinely loves both people reminds me of a study I remember a few years back. At the risk of being attacked from all sides, the study's author said that the thing she found that surprised her the most was that some % (I think it was 30-40%, could be wrong) of the women were quite happy to keep both relationships going indefinitely.

      Of course, there are such thing as polyagamist couples aka 'open marriages'. Although I don't personally know anybody with an arrangement like that.

      --
      The plural form of "anecdote" is "anecdotes", not "evidence".
  7. This article is useless without Pics by Your.Master · · Score: 4, Funny

    I swore I'd never spout that misogynist meme, but for once it bears a glimmer of truth.

    1. Re:This article is useless without Pics by ari_j · · Score: 1

      It's only misogynist in some applications. Most often, it is at worst superficial. Sometimes, it is completely neutral. I wish that people would do a better job of compartmentalizing these things so as to not blur their meanings.

  8. more average is more attractive by Noodles · · Score: 5, Interesting

    I saw an article in a science journal years ago that showed photos of women averaged together. The more photos in the average, the more attractive the final photo became. The conclusion was the more 'average' the woman looked, the more attractive she was. Makes sense to me.

    1. Re:more average is more attractive by Tablizer · · Score: 1

      I saw an article in a science journal years ago that showed photos of women averaged together. The more photos in the average, the more attractive the final photo became. The conclusion was the more 'average' the woman looked, the more attractive she was. Makes sense to me.

      I've noticed that most of the beauty contest contestants look "bland" to me. Its not that they are ugly, its just that they lack "spice". Throw in a few big booties here and there to mix it up, for example. Add in some round faces and also narrow faces. Women's faces are fascinating. Perhaps this sameness phenom is from supermarket magazines that like to emphasize all deviations/differences as "flaws", perhaps so that they can sell you a "fix".

    2. Re:more average is more attractive by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I for one really like tall slender blondes with large hips, breasts, and lips, long hair, eyelashes, and legs, green Asian eyes set wide apart, with IQ over 135... I WISH such women were average, and I think a lot of males would agree with me.

      I think the study's effects could be explained by the fact that a lot of minor imperfections and variabilities (pimples, skin deffects, feature dimentions, etc.) are removed once you average multiple images. It's the same reason that airbrushed women look better than their real appearance.

    3. Re:more average is more attractive by oni · · Score: 3, Insightful

      The conclusion was the more 'average' the woman looked, the more attractive she was.

      My unscientific opinion is that men tend to rate nearly all women as attractive, and are not very picky beyond that. It's almost a binary, yes/no kind of thing. If pressed a man might be able to say, "this woman is a 6 and this one is a 7" but that rating has no meaning because few, if any, men will pass up the 6 in order to pursue the 7. The male strategy seems to be a shotgun approach - flirt with every woman.

      Women on the other hand, seem to rate very few men as attractive, and do seem very picky. A woman will judge a male as "6" and ignore him completely, because she knows a 7 is out there somewhere, if she keeps looking.

      In summary, I think that if you picked 10 males and 10 females at random, and then asked 100 or so males to judge the females and vice versa, you would find that the males ranked the majority of the females as attractive, and "in the field" so to speak, you would find the males flirting with all of them. You would find that the females ranked a minority of males as attractive, and "in the field" you would find that those are the only ones they are interested in.

      So like you said, an average female face is indeed attractive. This is good news for women. Most of them (and they know this) are attractive to the opposite sex.

    4. Re:more average is more attractive by hcdejong · · Score: 1

      One explanation for this is that we consider symmetrical faces to be attractive (very few people are perfectly symmetrical). Averaging multiple photos will make for a decently symmetrical face.

    5. Re:more average is more attractive by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      "Average" is not the important thing. Symmetry is the important concept here. Symmetry is an indicator of fitness because fitness is an indicator of good development (I suppose that is a good indicator because is the most improbable thing). By the same reason, the average deletes the existent asymmetries.

    6. Re:more average is more attractive by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I saw an article in a science journal years ago that showed photos of women averaged together. The more photos in the average, the more attractive the final photo became. The conclusion was the more 'average' the woman looked, the more attractive she was. Makes sense to me.

      Averages are also called means. So what you are saying is that the more "mean" a woman looks the more attractive she is.

      Makes sense, huh?

      In any case, men's faces are harder to rate for attractiveness because all men are pretty similar in what they find attractive, whereas women tend to far greater extremes. What one woman finds extremely attractive another will find positively ugly. Men have far less variance in this, as in so many things, which is why men have always been favoured as the go-to gender for one-size-fits all cannon-fodder and other uniformed jobs.

    7. Re:more average is more attractive by Maxo-Texas · · Score: 1

      Watch 1930s-1950s movies... there were many kinds of beauty.

      Watch TV & movies today... even the busboys and waitresses all look basically the same beauty level as the leads which is very high.

      It's like "middle class" families living in $750k houses in movies and TV shows. And it really screws up our expectations and happiness in real life.

      --
      She was like chocolate when she drank... semi-sweet at first and then increasingly bitter.
    8. Re:more average is more attractive by ABoerma · · Score: 5, Informative

      You can test it for yourself at http://www.faceresearch.org/demos/average.

    9. Re:more average is more attractive by russotto · · Score: 2, Insightful

      One explanation for this is that we consider symmetrical faces to be attractive (very few people are perfectly symmetrical). Averaging multiple photos will make for a decently symmetrical face.


      Perhaps, but it turns out if you take one attractive but not perfectly symmetrical face, split it down the middle and combine with its mirror images, the resulting symmetrical faces are not more attractive; they look wrong.
    10. Re:more average is more attractive by LaskoVortex · · Score: 3, Informative

      This is the paper. There were several faces more attractive than the average. So, a conclusion from that paper was that you can't do wrong with average, but you can do better on occasion.

      --
      Just callin' it like I see it.
    11. Re:more average is more attractive by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

      Perhaps, but it turns out if you take one attractive but not perfectly symmetrical face, split it down the middle and combine with its mirror images, the resulting symmetrical faces are not more attractive; they look wrong.

      It's hard to do that right. It would be interesting to see what would happen if you averaged it with the mirror image.

    12. Re:more average is more attractive by Das+Modell · · Score: 1

      I've noticed that most of the beauty contest contestants look "bland" to me. Its not that they are ugly, its just that they lack "spice".

      They probably look generic in order to appeal to the widest possible audience.
    13. Re:more average is more attractive by Das+Modell · · Score: 1

      My unscientific opinion is that men tend to rate nearly all women as attractive, and are not very picky beyond that. It's almost a binary, yes/no kind of thing. If pressed a man might be able to say, "this woman is a 6 and this one is a 7" but that rating has no meaning because few, if any, men will pass up the 6 in order to pursue the 7. The male strategy seems to be a shotgun approach - flirt with every woman.

      I've noticed this as well, though I don't understand it. The entire philosophy is completely alien to me.
    14. Re:more average is more attractive by mackil · · Score: 1

      That explains a lot actually. I read an article that claimed most men would rather marry Pam Beesly from The Office over Angelina Jolie. Perhaps they were on to something.

    15. Re:more average is more attractive by Tablizer · · Score: 1


      They probably look generic in order to appeal to the widest possible audience.

      Couldn't they do the same with variety? If you have enough variety, then there would be at least one that you really like. Then again, they probably target a female audience who are not looking for juicy fantasies.

    16. Re:more average is more attractive by oni · · Score: 3, Insightful

      The entire philosophy is completely alien to me.

      Well, I think that a lot of it is basic, sexual-species instinct. A male who is too picky leaves fewer offspring than a male that is less picky. Thus, we all have the genes of those less picky males, and thus we are less picky. Conversely, a woman makes a huge investment in a child. At least several months and as much as three or four years. A woman who is less picky might get pregnant by a beta male, and then tomorrow, when that alpha male comes along, she can't take advantage of his genes. She loses. So as a result, the more picky females left more fit offspring, and as a result we all carry the genes for picky females.

      Contraceptives and abortion haven't been around long enough to change those instincts.

      Layered on top of that is our cultural programming, but its effect seems small, often invisible. Culture tells men to commit to one woman and buy her a giant diamond ring, but most men don't (or they do but they cheat) and women complain that men are "afraid of commitment" but that's like saying a bear is afraid to stay awake all winter. Culture tells women - actually, not even culture, most women are smart enough to realize that an average guy with a steady job and no major vices like alcoholism or violence will give them a happier life, but it's just so hard to resist the instinct that says, "bang the dirty guy from the biker gang." LOL!

      It's *very* difficult to overcome instinct, especially when you deny that the instinct exists. That's what we do. We pretend that we're special, that we're the only animal without these instincts.

    17. Re:more average is more attractive by ConceptJunkie · · Score: 1

      Maybe it's because Angelina Jolie is really strange and has a mouth like a trout. Plus she could probably beat most of us guys here up.

      --
      You are in a maze of twisty little passages, all alike.
    18. Re:more average is more attractive by hughperkins · · Score: 1

      Slashdotted in 1...2...3....

    19. Re:more average is more attractive by big_paul76 · · Score: 1

      "My unscientific opinion is that men tend to rate nearly all women as attractive, and are not very picky beyond that. It's almost a binary, yes/no kind of thing."

      You're kidding, right? How many times have you seen a guy who, on an attractive scale, is average or below, with some woman who's a 9 or a 10?

      Now how many times have you ever seen the reverse? A guy who's a 9 or a 10, i.e., tall, good physical shape, decent job, good conversationalist, dating a geeky, gorf-ed out chick who's just average or below?

      There's a way higher premium on female attractiveness.

      --
      The plural form of "anecdote" is "anecdotes", not "evidence".
    20. Re:more average is more attractive by oni · · Score: 1

      There's a way higher premium on female attractiveness.

      If you really think about it, you'll find that the premium is on female *youth*

      What I said holds true. Among women who appear young enough to bare healthy children, nearly all of will be labeled "attractive" if you were to survey heterosexual males.

      How many times have you seen a guy who, on an attractive scale, is average or below, with some woman who's a 9 or a 10?

      "Attractive" for the purposes of this discussion means "sexually attractive to the opposite sex." We're speaking in generalizations, but generally, a female is attractive if she appears young. Male attractiveness is much more complicated. This has been my thesis all along. Women are very picky and are looking at a lot of things and using very complex criteria to determine attractiveness.

      When you pass two people on the street, you are probably able to accurately judge the woman's attractiveness. So when you say, "some woman who's a 9 or a 10" you're probably right. But you are not able to accurately judge the male's attractiveness.

  9. As we all know.... by EmbeddedJanitor · · Score: 5, Insightful
    Women are in charge of quality control.

    Men will nail anything and the women really control sexual interactions. The cost of mating is far lower for men than for women therefore women are far more choosy.

    --
    Engineering is the art of compromise.
    1. Re:As we all know.... by xPsi · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Women are in charge of quality control.

      Men will nail anything and the women really control sexual interactions. The cost of mating is far lower for men than for women therefore women are far more choosy.

      Probably for most of our 100000+ years as a species this was true. But with birth and disease control advances in the past 50 years, great strides have been made to allow the relative coupling risks for women to drop considerably, at least in principle. Some men and women embrace this sexual symmetry by choice and this has given women more sexual freedom than ever before in history (i.e. they don't have to be so choosy), but for many, I guess old evolutionary habits are (understandably) hard to break since certain behaviors are essentially embedded in our wetware.
      --
      i\hbar\dot{\psi}=\hat{H}\psi
    2. Re:As we all know.... by cgenman · · Score: 1

      I wish I could find the studies offhand, but alas it has been a while. There are studies showing that while what you say is true earlier on in life, the situation reverses later. As men become older, they're more able to take care of women (financially, emotionally, etc), and as such their attractability increases and they can afford to be picky. At the same time, women are reaching the end of their procreatory age, and must find mates.

      Hence, through the early 20's, women have a strong upper hand in negotiation. Through the 30's, men tend to.

    3. Re:As we all know.... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      and yet the human specie is one of the few cases where females are prettier than males. In other species, since females do the choosing, males have to show off their good looks while females have to do nothing but say yes. In humans, females are highly preoccupied with their looks as prettier girls get more attention. This comes to show that humans are not entirely polygynous (a few guys cannot have all the girls), so ugly girls risk ending up with a loser instead of being in the harem of Mr. Rich and Hot and women have to actually compete for the best husbands.

    4. Re:As we all know.... by Profound · · Score: 1

      In species where there is no after-mating interaction by the male (such as some birds) the male will be the one who has the decorations and measured on attractiveness, eg Peacock vs plain pea hen.

      In humans, the male is expected to share the responsibility for the offspring, by relatives, the tribe or in modern days - society (via child support)

      Yes, biologically women do the most work, but it is interesting to note which sex is judged most on attractiveness and put the most effort into their appearance.

    5. Re:As we all know.... by fatmal · · Score: 1

      .....are essentially embedded in our wetware.

      Eeewwwwww!
    6. Re:As we all know.... by dr_d_19 · · Score: 1

      ...but for many, I guess old evolutionary habits are (understandably) hard to break since certain behaviors are essentially embedded in our wetware ...or simply because most men like the old way of things where they could tell women what to wear and do. Some countries fight harder than others to keep things this way. Some other even thinks that men and women are completely equal. How ridiculous huh?

    7. Re:As we all know.... by hashwolf · · Score: 1

      "The cost of mating is far lower for men than for women". Whaaaaaaat?!

      --
      - "They misunderestimated me."
    8. Re:As we all know.... by esocid · · Score: 1

      It all breaks down to who is the caregiver in reproduction, whether or not that may happen. When females are the caregivers, they are the ones who get to choose. When it's the other way around, as in seahorses, the females fight over the males. It's pretty standard across the board, from a biological standpoint.

      --
      Absolute power corrupts absolutely. indymedia
    9. Re:As we all know.... by cwtrex · · Score: 1

      Not all men are less choosy:

      My list of must haves in a woman:
      - No drugs (non-prescribed of course)
      - No alcohol
      - No smoking
      - No tatoos
      - No excessive jewelry
      - No excessive eyebrow plucking (if at all)
      - No dying hair
      - No Bulimia or anorexic issues
      - No makeup if possible or very little
      - No perfume or hair spray
      - Not older than me
      - Must be able to think for them self. (Have some sort of brain)

      Now when you consider most American girls, I bet I just eliminated at least 90% of the girls 18 and over and you can't really trust the 18 year olds as they are still trying to make up there mind as to if they want to follow the sheep or not.

      Now my list isn't even half way finished, but I ask: Who's the picky one again?

  10. Why do we need software for this? by $RANDOMLUSER · · Score: 5, Funny

    I thought that's what beer was for.

    --
    No folly is more costly than the folly of intolerant idealism. - Winston Churchill
    1. Re:Why do we need software for this? by DickBreath · · Score: 1

      I need software to help me judge the attractiveness of women. Like other software that performs an important but infrequently used function, I would have to study the man pages and figure out the options on those rare occasions when I need to know if a woman is attractive.

      --

      I'll see your senator, and I'll raise you two judges.
    2. Re:Why do we need software for this? by Tablizer · · Score: 1

      I thought that's what beer was for.

      But the score always approaches "10" as consumption approaches 8 cans.

    3. Re:Why do we need software for this? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Which is why you need this software on your cell phone - take a pic of the chick you want to hit on and let it tell your drunk ass whether or not to proceed based on the minimum score you set when you were sober. Beer goggles solved.

    4. Re:Why do we need software for this? by wattrlz · · Score: 1

      Actually, I think this software might be very useful to quite a few people after a large quantity of beer. Just port it to your camera phone and suddenly you've got a portable second opinion of who you should leave with.

    5. Re:Why do we need software for this? by Tablizer · · Score: 1

      Which is why you need this software on your cell phone - take a pic of the chick you want to hit on and let it tell your drunk ass whether or not to proceed based on the minimum score you set when you were sober. Beer goggles solved.

      Didn't work. I got soused, saw the pic, and ended up doing it with my cellphone. Whadda mess.

  11. In other news by evolvearth · · Score: 1

    In other news: Researchers on the project were forced to cooperate with woman researchers in fear of being accused of homosexuality.

  12. fixup by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Apparently, men' faces are more difficult to grade. Apparently, nobody cares about men's faces.

    There, fixed that for you.
  13. Missing Word by Kyont · · Score: 5, Funny

    Women's Attractiveness Judged by Software Engineers

    There, fixed that title for you...

    --
    You shall see a cow on the roof of a cotton house.
    1. Re:Missing Word by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Hammer meet nail.

    2. Re:Missing Word by TempeTerra · · Score: 1

      That was the original research title, until the engineers were (embarrassingly) replaced by a small shell script:

      #!/bin/bash
      true

      --
      .evom ton seod gis eht
    3. Re:Missing Word by pclminion · · Score: 1

      So when a Bayesian spam filter classifies your email (correctly), do you feel that your email has been classified not by the software itself, but by the people who wrote it? Weird way of looking at it.

  14. Knees by kevin_conaway · · Score: 2, Funny

    I thought the true measure of a womans attractiveness was the pointiness of her knees

    1. Re:Knees by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You did mean ears - didnt you?

  15. HotOrNot Turing test by Nimey · · Score: 1

    Think about that.

    --
    Hail Eris, full of mischief...

    E pluribus sanguinem
    1. Re:HotOrNot Turing test by SatanicPuppy · · Score: 1

      I'd actually though about that when I first heard of the website...That's a lot of interesting data being collected.

      Still, the lack of any demographic information on the reviewers makes the rest of the data much less useful.

      --
      ad logicam Claiming a proposition is false because it was presented as the conclusion of a fallacious argument.
    2. Re:HotOrNot Turing test by vita10gy · · Score: 1

      If it were going to use hot of not as any basis they would need to detect if the girl was blond and subtract 2 if she was and detect if there's at least a hint of cleavage in the photo and subtract 1 to 3 depending on exposure level. Otherwise the hot or not rankings are so skewed they are useless.

  16. Hot or Not by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I think there should be a few years of hotornot data to seed the AI system. Of course that might not jibe with actual beauty and may reflect more on the relative states of undress of the aspirant "hotties."

  17. Even beyond that... by SatanicPuppy · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Even beyond the very real problems listed above, I'm not aware of any actual empirical standard of beauty. All you can point to is a general average of perceptions of attractiveness, and even that is far from foolproof as evidenced by the thousands of women who actively try to personify that average, and end up looking subtly hideous (a la Anna Nicole Smith).

    In the end, it all comes down to individual perception. Sit ten guys down with thirty pictures, and you're going to get 10 different #1's. Maybe you can teach a program to be able to say who it thinks is hot, whatever use that is. Or you could write a program that would allow a person to rate a hundred or so pictures, so that you could run a dating service that automatically pairs you up with people it thinks you'll find attractive...That's the only use I can come up with.

    --
    ad logicam Claiming a proposition is false because it was presented as the conclusion of a fallacious argument.
    1. Re:Even beyond that... by toddbu · · Score: 5, Funny
      In the end, it all comes down to individual perception.

      I wonder how the algorithm works after the machine has had a few beers.

      --
      If you don't want crime to pay, let the government run it.
    2. Re:Even beyond that... by pragma_x · · Score: 1

      Well, wouldn't a large sample size (say, tens of thousands) help cancel out most of the individual preferences? At least then, your data would only be skewed by social/cultural preferences of your overall sample group, which may be good enough to get an idea of any underlying (instinctive?) standard of beauty.

    3. Re:Even beyond that... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I thought Anna Nicole Smith was quite beautiful when she stayed in shape and wasn't bloated.

    4. Re:Even beyond that... by SatanicPuppy · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Yes and no. Yes, you'll get a more accurate answer, as far as the machine is concerned, but no, in that the answer will be the lowest common denominator of attractiveness.

      When you put enough numbers together, all you really get is the sort of bland result that is acceptable to the largest number of people. The female equivalent of McDonald's food, top 40 music, and white bread...No real room in there for the beauty that can occasionally startle you, stop you in your tracks, that we all look for and seldom find on television.

      --
      ad logicam Claiming a proposition is false because it was presented as the conclusion of a fallacious argument.
    5. Re:Even beyond that... by SatanicPuppy · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Not me, but that's pretty much my point. You thought she was beautiful and I didn't, and neither of us is objectively right or wrong.

      --
      ad logicam Claiming a proposition is false because it was presented as the conclusion of a fallacious argument.
    6. Re:Even beyond that... by MarcoAtWork · · Score: 2, Insightful

      I'm not aware of any actual empirical standard of beauty


      you are kidding right? Even programming a very simple algorithm along the lines of

      bigger eyes, beauty++
      highly symmetrical face, beauty++
      triangular or oval shaped face, beauty++
      clear skin, beauty++

      will give you a pretty good set of matches
      --
      -- the cake is a lie
    7. Re:Even beyond that... by wattrlz · · Score: 1

      Actually, teaching the program to have an opinion of who it thinks is hot is a far cooler concept in my mind than training a program to analyze picture files to determine which one a group of about thirty people would be more likely to prefer. Though I suppose this would be very useful for a computer dating service.

    8. Re:Even beyond that... by gravesb · · Score: 2, Interesting

      I thought there were studies that show symmetry had a very high impact on attractiveness.

      --
      http://bgcommonsense.blogspot.com
    9. Re:Even beyond that... by SatanicPuppy · · Score: 1

      Well, no doubt most asymmetrical people have trouble dating, so yea, I can see that.

      Joking aside, most people already are symmetrical, so it would definitely stand out for people who aren't.

      --
      ad logicam Claiming a proposition is false because it was presented as the conclusion of a fallacious argument.
    10. Re:Even beyond that... by hardburn · · Score: 1

      Sit ten guys down with thirty pictures, and you're going to get 10 different #1's

      True, but all ten will tend to agree on which ones are beautiful and which ones aren't. It's just the #1 position that will be different.

      Besides, don't we all dream of the future when robots can sit at bars and say "Hey, checkout the RAM on that baby!" No, I don't either.

      --
      Not a typewriter
    11. Re:Even beyond that... by Otter · · Score: 1
      When you put enough numbers together, all you really get is the sort of bland result that is acceptable to the largest number of people....No real room in there for the beauty that can occasionally startle you, stop you in your tracks, that we all look for and seldom find on television.

      You obviously don't watch Univision!!!

      Anyway, even if you're completely right, explaining 98% or 99% of beauty still seems like an interesting intellectual exercise.

    12. Re:Even beyond that... by SatanicPuppy · · Score: 5, Funny

      You just described something out of the x-files...Want to try again?

      --
      ad logicam Claiming a proposition is false because it was presented as the conclusion of a fallacious argument.
    13. Re:Even beyond that... by erlenic · · Score: 1

      I don't remember where I read this, so take it with the appropriate levels of salt.

      The study that I think you're referencing was actually linking symmetry and fidelity. They found that if a man's face was a little bit asymmetrical, his wife/girlfriend was measurably more likely to cheat on him than if he had a symmetrical face. The hypothesized explanation had to do with instinctive sexual selection, so there was an undertone of symmetry = beauty, but they didn't spell it out like that.

      The summary I read made no mention of how the symmetry of the woman's face effected the man's fidelity.

    14. Re:Even beyond that... by timeOday · · Score: 5, Insightful

      The idea that there are no set standards for beauty is wishful thinking. Every guy wants to find a girl who is beautiful and for some reason nobody else has noticed. In reality this never happens. The next time you see a pretty woman in the airport, don't look at her, look at all the guys as she walks by, it's quite noticeable. Attractive people are treated better from a young age and, knowingly or unknowingly, they leverage this asset to get what they want. This is not some quirk in the study of psychology, it's the driving force behind the behaviors that shape evolution. It's a cruel trick of nature that we are not all created equal, and I'm glad we're civilized enough to moderate some of the resulting inequality.

    15. Re:Even beyond that... by tekiegreg · · Score: 2

      Obligatory:

      Bite my shiny metal *ss

      --
      ...in bed
    16. Re:Even beyond that... by StarfishOne · · Score: 1

      They feed it through special tubes!

    17. Re:Even beyond that... by internetcommie · · Score: 1

      Then the woman who hasn't already teamed up with another algorithm is most attractive...

    18. Re:Even beyond that... by Das+Modell · · Score: 1

      The idea that there are no set standards for beauty is wishful thinking.

      Please show me empirical standards for beauty.
    19. Re:Even beyond that... by steelfood · · Score: 1

      In the end, it all comes down to individual perception.

      This is true in part because it depends on what the individual looks like.

      There was a study some years back that basically established a link between having similar features and being attractive. Essentially, people who shared features with or looked similar to a person would be less attractive to that person, and more familial.

      But the wide and obvious variation in what gets people off should've been sufficient indication of this flaw in the first place.

      --
      "If a nation expects to be ignorant and free in a state of civilization, it expects what never was and never will be."
    20. Re:Even beyond that... by MadnessASAP · · Score: 3, Funny
      being human, beauty++

      Especiall on /.

      --
      I may agree with what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to face the consequences of saying it.
    21. Re:Even beyond that... by Omestes · · Score: 1

      I have a question with all of these studies, how much of this is purely cultural? A more interesting study would to be to take all the historically popular/attractive models and run them through some algorithm to find commonalities. Its rather well known that attractive morphologies change through time (compare the heroin chic of the 90s to the painting of Rubin), but does this also hold true for facial structures. A cross cultural analysis would remove much of the cultural bias.

      --
      A patriot must always be ready to defend his country against his government. -edward abbey
    22. Re:Even beyond that... by UncleTogie · · Score: 1

      Does a study entitled "Empirical Survey of Beauty Standards" count?

      --
      Don't tell me to get a life. I'm a gamer; I have LOTS of lives!
    23. Re:Even beyond that... by debrain · · Score: 3, Interesting

      Attractive people are treated better from a young age and, knowingly or unknowingly, they leverage this asset to get what they want. All beautiful women who have been stalked, abused, or raped because they are physically attractive, may beg to differ. Also, not being taken seriously because you're a "barbie doll" is a less-than-subtle discrimination permeating Western society. Attractiveness, like all things, has good and bad points. It is fallacious to say it is an asset without costs.

      You may be interested in reading about the "evolutionarily deceptive" teenage years, where soon-to-be-ugly people appear attractive to seduce a mate, and soon-to-be-beautiful people repel mates so as to avoid the wrong one.

    24. Re:Even beyond that... by wealthychef · · Score: 4, Funny

      I can't believe the algorithm looks at faces. Obviously wasn't designed by a man.

      --
      Currently hooked on AMP
    25. Re:Even beyond that... by borawjm · · Score: 5, Funny

      I wonder how the algorithm works after the machine has had a few beers.

      The algorithm works better, but the hardware fails.

    26. Re:Even beyond that... by InsertCleverUsername · · Score: 1

      In the end, it all comes down to individual perception. Sit ten guys down with thirty pictures, and you're going to get 10 different #1's. Maybe you can teach a program to be able to say who it thinks is hot, whatever use that is. Perhaps we're approaching this problem from the wrong angle? Beauty is a subjective thing --but everyone knows ugly when they see it! We should focus our efforts on developing systems that can identify the LEAST ugly woman in the room.

      --
      Ask me about my sig!
    27. Re:Even beyond that... by Das+Modell · · Score: 1

      No, because there are no empirical standards for beauty. Someone I find beautiful can be and often is dull or ugly to someone else.

    28. Re:Even beyond that... by Eudial · · Score: 5, Funny

      In the end, it all comes down to individual perception.

      I wonder how the algorithm works after the machine has had a few beers.


      Here's the revised version:


      hotness_t is_good_looking_drunk(void* girl) {
              return ID_TAP_THAT;
      } // Auxiliary morning after code
      void hangover(void* girl) {
          if(is_slashdotter(this) || girl == NULL) {
              basement.exit();
              new breakfast()->eat(); // Sorry, no clean-up
              throw new moan();
          }

          try {
              if(memory.search(LAST_NIGHT, "condom") || !is_good_looking_sober(girl)) {
                    exit(EXIT_QUIETLY);
              } else throw new logic_error("Yeah right"); // Like this ever happens
          } catch (amnesia_error* e) { // Plausible deniability :-D
                  aspirin* a = find(this->apartment(), T_ASPIRIN);
                  if(a == NULL) throw new moan();
                  else this->ingest(a);
          }
      }
      --
      GAAH! MY PRINTER IS ON FIRE!!! PUT IT OUT! PUT IT OUT!
    29. Re:Even beyond that... by The-Bus · · Score: 4, Funny

      Wow, I may end up being the most handsome man in the world. I've been repelling mates for many years past my teenage years.

      --

      Small potatoes make the steak look bigger.

    30. Re:Even beyond that... by shellbeach · · Score: 1

      I wonder how the algorithm works after the machine has had a few beers. Actually, I think you'll find that it's a bottle of wine over the keyboard that really causes problems ...

    31. Re:Even beyond that... by dgatwood · · Score: 2, Interesting

      What would be useful for a computer dating service would be for you to rate each girl as you see them in terms of attractiveness, similar interests, etc. and use an algorithm like this to then filter out women that you probably wouldn't be interested in. Since each person's definition of beauty differs, it really needs to learn an individual's preference. Ideally, this could be combined with latent semantic analysis of the text that the potential dates typed as part of their profile to further improve matching accuracy. Man, I should totally design and patent that.... That and five bucks would buy me a cup of coffee at Starbucks.

      --

      Check out my sci-fi/humor trilogy at PatriotsBooks.

    32. Re:Even beyond that... by kiracatgirl · · Score: 3, Insightful

      I don't believe he ever said or implied that being attractive had no negative points, just that it is an inherent benefit - or perhaps it's better to say weapon - in human social interactions. Somewhat akin to the two-edged sword analogy, it can either help or hurt you. Attractive people either wield their attractiveness knowingly to further their own ends, or unknowingly and to an unknown end. Using it actively can cause unforseen negative repercussions (fanboy stalkers etc.), and using it unknowingly causes all sorts of benefits and detriments to the attractive person and to those around him/her. Being unattractive works in much the same way, albeit with vastly different effects.

    33. Re:Even beyond that... by DavidShor · · Score: 1
      Please provide some evidence that probability of rape/stalking/abuse are related to attractiveness. From my experience, the relationship just is not there.


      But whatever the costs, the presence of a huge plastic surgery industry suggests that the cost is outweighed by the benefit.


      "You may be interested in reading about the "evolutionarily deceptive" teenage years, where soon-to-be-ugly people appear attractive to seduce a mate, and soon-to-be-beautiful people repel mates so as to avoid the wrong one."


      Do you have any literature for that? I don't see how that is an evolutionary stable strategy. S

    34. Re:Even beyond that... by omnifrog · · Score: 2, Insightful

      There's a quote I can't seem to remember but paraphrased, it's something like this:

      If you think no one takes you seriously because you're beautiful, just see how seriously they'd take you when you're ugly.

      The human condition is that most of us are a$$holes to people we don't know. Beautiful people tend to have different experiences with jerks, but studies have shown time and time again that they ultimately benefit from their beauty. Including lower rates of depression and teenage suicide as well as other metrics such as paycheck size. When I hear someone prettier than me complain that people don't take them seriously because they are beautiful, it generally annoys me... at least they're getting some attention at all.

      It's a similar comparison to a rich person who is stressed out about the fact that they're going to wear the same outfit to two parties. The stress is real, but it's nothing like worrying about whether you can pay your next rent bill.

      In my experience, the prettier people who complain about problems due to their attractiveness are not attention whoring, but actually feel as if their attractiveness is a burden, but fortunately for them, they have never actually had to worry about the isolation and other problems that occur when one is unattractive.

    35. Re:Even beyond that... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      "Every guy wants to find a girl"

      Not true.

    36. Re:Even beyond that... by Paradise+Pete · · Score: 1
      Here's the revised version:

      That's really good.

    37. Re:Even beyond that... by flynn23 · · Score: 1

      There are some empirical evidences that make beauty quantifiable. Most of it is relevant to how symmetrical your face is, and the closer that is to perfect, the better you'll score across subjective ratings. There's also adherence to the golden mean or golden spiral ratios. If you ever watch the Fox Reality show (yeah, I know) Battle of the Bods, you'll see that it's pretty easy to build consensus on subjective measures. While not every group gets every order right, the highs and lows tend to be unanimous. That is to say that it's easy to pick really pretty people and really ugly people, but not relevant to each other within their appropriate group.

    38. Re:Even beyond that... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Boo hoo.

    39. Re:Even beyond that... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I am interested in reading about them. Do you have a source I could start with?

    40. Re:Even beyond that... by qkw · · Score: 0

      I remember a number of years ago I saw a documentary starring John Clease and Liz Taylor about the science of beauty (sorry i can't find any references). The big thing to come from this was an exploration into the golden ratio. One of the guys they talked to in it made up a "mask" made up of triangles where side lengths were at the golden ratio, in the general shape of a face. Then they put this mask over images of beautiful people (with whom the mask lined up well) and ugly people (where the mask has no correlation to the face).

      Of course I suppose this is highly dependant on the mask that was chosen, but as a heuristic at the very least it demonstrates the computability of beauty.

      --
      ---- Design. Invent. Cheese.
    41. Re:Even beyond that... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I'd hit it!

    42. Re:Even beyond that... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

      Damn that's hot. Got any more pics?

    43. Re:Even beyond that... by smellotron · · Score: 1

      explaining 98% or 99% of beauty still seems like an interesting intellectual exercise.

      Symmetry and the Golden Ratio. There, I did it.

    44. Re:Even beyond that... by Vectronic · · Score: 1

      "you could run a dating service that automatically pairs you up with people it thinks you'll find attractive...That's the only use I can come up with."

      At the moment, I agree, given that this (seems) to be purely based on "what is"... but what if they take it a step further, and add the ability to analyze DNA/Genes and determine what combination of you and your spouse would create the "best" looking child (horribly superficial, but you know thousands would go for that)... also plastic surgery, where it could analyze bone structure, flesh densities, and come up with (according the Hal9000) what the best possible "reconstruction" could be...

      I see no use in the former, however the latter, (with an integrated understanding of what "tools" are available)... could work wonders as far as people who have been in accidents, or "attacked" by someone/thing...

      But generally I just see this is a new way of segregation, a computationally improved version of "mommy why dont I look like her on the magazine?"...

    45. Re:Even beyond that... by debrain · · Score: 1

      Please provide some evidence that probability of rape/stalking/abuse are related to attractiveness. From my experience, the relationship just is not there. I took it as trite, but here: Causes of Rape: "Warren Farrell ... [noted] that (male-female) rape statistics show young and sexually attractive females are raped far more often than older, less sexually attractive females."

      What exactly and how broad are your experiences that differ, that would make you a credible authority to refute this?

      But whatever the costs, the presence of a huge plastic surgery industry suggests that the cost is outweighed by the benefit.

      That assumes cognizant and rational understanding of cause-and-effect at the time of getting plastic surgery, in oft superficial consumers that consider plastic surgery a way to spend money to make their life "better".

      Do you have any literature for that? I don't see how that is an evolutionary stable strategy. Pretty sure I recall that from pre-internet publications, though it circulates to the top, from time to time. The only reference could find offhand is Is acne really a disease?: a theory of acne as an evolutionarily significant, high-order psychoneuroimmune interaction timed to cortical development with a crucial role in mate choice. Medical Hypotheses, Volume 62, Issue 3, Pages 462-469, which is only a summary and merely alludes to my conjecture. You can always drop by a medical library to check it out and post a summary, here. :) I'd like to find a solid reference for it, but alas, the internet has failed me on this one.

    46. Re:Even beyond that... by jamesh · · Score: 1

      Joking aside, most people already are symmetrical, so it would definitely stand out for people who aren't.


      I think most people are _mostly_ symmetrical, but not completely. My rib cage is noticeably (to me) bigger on one side than the other, and when I wear sunglasses, my eyelashes rub on the right lens while they don't on the left (I have quite long eyelashes - my daughters have inherited that trait from me and it looks great on them but not so much on me :)

    47. Re:Even beyond that... by Godji · · Score: 1

      void* girl?

      Are you saying that all girls are empty inside?

    48. Re:Even beyond that... by ChrisMP1 · · Score: 1

      Either that was a failed, kind of rude attempt at humour, or you have no clue about programming.

      On second thought, what am I saying? This is Slashdot. The probability of first clause of the former is 0.999, of the second 0.800, and of the latter 0.667. It's probably both.

      --
      <sig>&nbsp;</sig>
    49. Re:Even beyond that... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      seriously how does this algorithm match up to the responses of real men like test it against the views of Anonymous on imageboards such as http://lolikun.org/ ?

    50. Re:Even beyond that... by Belial6 · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Complaining about being beautiful is like complaining about being rich. The benefits massively outweigh the drawbacks to the point of not even making a difference. Just like when your rich, you can easily make yourself not rich, someone who is beautiful can easily make themselves not beautiful. The reason that beautiful people, particularly women, often get treated like "barbie dolls" is because as a group, they are FAR more likely to be dumb. Why would this be? Because they are human. Humans generally take the path of least resistance. If they don't have to learn, they generally don't learn. A hot woman is way more likely to live well by leveraging her looks than an ugly woman. This is not a judgment of 'women' as much as a judgment of 'human'. Stop for a second and think about whether you would REALLY spend as much time and effort improving your intellect if for your entire adult life, you had a line of women that would buy you whatever you wanted, and have sex with you any time you wanted. I know I wouldn't be as smart.

      "All beautiful women who have been stalked, abused, or raped because they are physically attractive, may beg to differ."

      I think that every ugly woman who has been stalked, abused, or raped irrelevant of their physical appearance may beg to differ with you.

      It's real simple. Any beautiful woman that REALLY thinks being beautiful is worse than being ugly is too stupid to have a valid opinion. If she really believed it, and was smarter than a retarded monkey, she would just stop being beautiful.

    51. Re:Even beyond that... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I would have though that being human was more important to people not on Slashdot and that we'd be more tolerant of alien babes. Meh, maybe its just me.

    52. Re:Even beyond that... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Looks pretty fucking hot to me....

    53. Re:Even beyond that... by Some1too · · Score: 1

      `Even beyond the very real problems listed above, I'm not aware of any actual empirical standard of beauty`. I believe some people or studies have shown we see beauty in symmetry. Don`t have any quick links or resources to back it up but makes sense.

    54. Re:Even beyond that... by sheldonc · · Score: 2, Funny

      You just described something out of the x-files...Want to try again? A wig and a little lip gloss... I can see it...
    55. Re:Even beyond that... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      >>All beautiful women who have been stalked, abused, or raped because they are physically attractive, may beg to differ.

      That kind of thing doesn't happen that often, maybe to 10% or so at most. The other 90% enjoy the tremendous benefits of attractiveness with little cost.

      >>Also, not being taken seriously because you're a "barbie doll" is a less-than-subtle discrimination permeating Western society.

      This has more to do with how a person behaves and positions herself. If she behaves like a doll, she will be treated as such. If she is serious, businesslike, and professional, then she will be treated accordingly most of the time.

      >>Attractiveness, like all things, has good and bad points. It is fallacious to say it is an asset without costs.

      Yes, everything has costs and benefits. In the case of attractiveness, benefits far outweigh the costs. It is even more fallacious to point out that we have both while not saying that one far exceeds the other.

    56. Re:Even beyond that... by ResidntGeek · · Score: 1

      The main problem I see with your approach is that attractive people don't use dating services - they've already got dates. You'd have to rate potential matches as more or less unattractive.

      --
      ResidntGeek
    57. Re:Even beyond that... by virgil_disgr4ce · · Score: 1

      I'm surprised I haven't seen this pointed out yet, so hopefully it's not redundant: Looking for an objective measurement of beauty? Try the millihelen! It's the amount of beauty it takes to launch one ship, or one thousandth of a Helen! :D

    58. Re:Even beyond that... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      > The next time you see a pretty woman in the airport, don't look at her, look at all the guys as she walks by

      Dude, if a beautiful woman walks by and you are checking out guys instead of her, you're probably gay.

    59. Re:Even beyond that... by Alpha830RulZ · · Score: 1

      But individual standards clearly converge, within given societies. I conducted a seminar in this, recently, at a hot singles bar (no shit) where I educated my clients on how boosting and bagging algorithms work, with the example problem of classifying waitresses as whether they were "Hot" or "Not Hot". The relevant point was, we had little difficulty in agreeing as to hotness, as I suspect you and your friends do as well. Objectively, when certain women walk down the street, all male heads turn. Determining the feature set that makes this happen is difficult for people, but I suspect that this is an area where machine learning may actually have an advantage over wetware. 30 opinions, over a reasonable set of data points, might easily produce a sufficient umber of training points.

      Rank ordering hotness, now, that's a trickier problem. It's also trickier getting into multi valued solutions, such as NotHot, Hot, and NastyHot.

      --
      I was taught to respect my elders. The trouble is, it's getting harder and harder to find some.
    60. Re:Even beyond that... by krunk7 · · Score: 1

      Even beyond the very real problems listed above, I'm not aware of any actual empirical standard of beauty.
      Actually, symmetry has been shown to the be common denominator in high ranks of beauty in animals and even objects, sculpture, art, etc. Asymmetry is consistently ranked lower in visual appeal then symmetrical patterns, faces, bodies, and so on. Wikipedia speaks a little of this and sites one or two studies, but the phenomenon is well documented and researched.
    61. Re:Even beyond that... by Eivind · · Score: 1

      Individual perception counts, but it doesn't dominate.

      If you let 100 random men rate 100 random women, you will indeed get several different #1 candidates, and several different #100 candidates.

      If you plot the position of one woman though, it will not look anything like random, rather it will have a distinct peak indicating that MOST of the males are close to agreeing MOST of the time.

      You won't find a woman that 10 men rate as #1 and 10 other men as #100, instead you'll find that the one rated #1 by most people is generally rated in the top-20 even by those who didn't rate her #1.

      There'll be a few ratings way outside the norm, a very few men will rate a woman that most find attractive as unattractive, and vice versa. But those will be few and far between.

    62. Re:Even beyond that... by xenocide2 · · Score: 1

      No, void* simply tells the compiler to ignore type. Ie, you don't care about whether she's your type or not.

      --
      I Browse at +4 Flamebait

      Open Source Sysadmin

    63. Re:Even beyond that... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Actually, some psychologists made an experiment with averaging (male criminals) faces and the result was of very high attractiveness.

    64. Re:Even beyond that... by EdIII · · Score: 2, Funny

      LOL. That's exactly what I was thinking!

      A male designed algorithm will be processing everything from the neck down :)

      Ohhh, and the whole damn thing could BSOD on some DD's.....

    65. Re:Even beyond that... by definate · · Score: 1

      Tell me more about beauty++

      --
      This is my footer. There are many like it, but this one is mine.
    66. Re:Even beyond that... by neocrono · · Score: 1

      I took it to mean that anything will pass for a girl.

      Since the function presupposes you're drunk, and given the drinking habits and/or standards of some guys I know, that doesn't seem too far fetched at all.

    67. Re:Even beyond that... by hey! · · Score: 1

      Well, I think there is a difference between beauty and prettiness, although the terms are often used interchangeably.

      Facial attractiveness has been studied by anthropologists for some years now. Like other measures of physical attractiveness, factors contributing to female facial attractiveness are signs of robust physical health and fertility. Examples include clear, healthy looking skin, and physical symmetry. Physical symmetry is particularly interesting, because it is a very strong indicator of excellent physical health an nutrition.

      There was a paper I read about a few years ago dealing with computer generated faces; the program started with scans of actual faces, then combined and morphed the features. The most attractive face turned out to be the one they got by finding the median of all the facial measurements. This makes sense too. It turns out to be extremely difficult to be average in every way, and this probably is also a measure of physical health and nutrition.

      So I don't think prettiness is simply in the eye of the beholder, although the eye of the beholder may be trained somewhat by averaging the faces it sees every day. This is another example of how the most potent human sexual organ is the brain. I remember back in the day when you could count on Slashdot to deliver a puerile discussion of Natalie Portman every day, there was a post complaining that she "wasn't really hot." She's not. She's quite pretty; if she were walking down the street you'd notice her, but you wouldn't stare in slack mouthed amazement. But she's also a very good actor, and actors know how to mess with your brain. If she wanted you to see her as sexy, your brain would probably have a meltdown.

      If we were to distinguish "prettiness" from "beauty", I think it is something that happens in the higher levels of the brain than sensory perception. Anna Nicole Smith seems hideous to you because signs of obsessive grooming, and behavioral cues suggestive of poor judgment and impulse control. These set off alarm bells that say, back off. At least they should if you are reasonably perceptive and experienced.

      On the other hand, your children are beautiful to you, even if they are plain looking and badly behaved.

      Prettiness is what gets our attention. Beauty is what holds it, what makes us want to be involved.

      --
      Post may contain irony: discontinue use if experiencing mood swings, nausea or elevated blood pressure.
    68. Re:Even beyond that... by pragma_x · · Score: 1

      You obviously don't watch Univision!!!


      LOL. Someone mod parent "+1 Aye Carumba!"
    69. Re:Even beyond that... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Physical attractiveness is dependent on normality: people who are unattractive are mutants, to a greater or lesser extent, from the normal way that humans 'should' look.

      Look at animals: undomesticated animals all look the same, with only tiny variations between each individual.

    70. Re:Even beyond that... by electrictroy · · Score: 1

      I think it's safe to say "healthy appearance == beauty". That eliminates those who appear unhealthy, such as a potbelly or damaged skin or missing eye, and thus wouldn't make good mates (they might die before your baby is old enough to care for him/herself, thus negating your genes ability to survive into the future).

      We call it "beauty" but it's really about our own genes, and ensuring our mate is healthy enough to survive nature's harshness.

      --
      The government is not your daddy. Its purpose is not to raid middle-class neighbors' wallets and give it to you.
    71. Re:Even beyond that... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The idea that there are no set standards for beauty is wishful thinking.

      I think the point is that there really are different tastes in women and different ideals of beauty. I grew up at various times in different communities... some dominated by white suburban culture, others dominated by more mixed urban culture. The different standards for beauty between those two subcultures were striking. In the white suburban cultures, being skinny and petite with blonde and blue eyes was, in general, clearly preferred in females. Such women were highly sought after and had all the signs of being catered to because of their looks. In the Urban environment skinny with blonde and blue eyes was a liability, not an assett. The women who had more meat on them(while retaining curves) and big dark eyes seemed to be the most popular.

      In the white suburb schools, a Jessica Simpson type would be what the guys would most drool over, in the urban schools I went to, it would be more like Jordin Sparks. I've come to lean more towards the Jordin Sparks type, but that could be because I don't find European women in general attractive. And that right there is another example, I and many others I know, prefer asian women, or latina women, or black women, etc... whereas the mainstream standard of beauty in the US tends to be like Brittany Spears, who I would not look at in an airport, or sleep with if I could even get it up for her at all(even when she was at what most consider her peak).

      All most straight men here have to do is watch a fashion show to be convinced that there are different standards of beauty. Many of the models are disgustingly thin and many do not have faces that I or any of my friends would be looking for in a mate. Yet, someone thought they were beautiful because there they are being presented as beautiful people,

    72. Re:Even beyond that... by theMatrix777 · · Score: 1

      The idea that there are no set standards for beauty is wishful thinking. Every guy wants to find a girl who is beautiful and for some reason nobody else has noticed. In reality this never happens. The next time you see a pretty woman in the airport, don't look at her, look at all the guys as she walks by, it's quite noticeable. Attractive people are treated better from a young age and, knowingly or unknowingly, they leverage this asset to get what they want. This is not some quirk in the study of psychology, it's the driving force behind the behaviors that shape evolution. It's a cruel trick of nature that we are not all created equal, and I'm glad we're civilized enough to moderate some of the resulting inequality. I agree. It is a sad commentary on society and a fact people try to ignore. Attractive people in this society, whether it is a man or woman, are treated better. The idea that software can possibly decide on beauty is ridiculous. There are too many factors, too many variables.

      The mystery is the same as why do men fall in love with the women they do? Are attractive people the only ones to find love and marry? No. Ugly people are attractive and beautiful in the eyes of someone. A computer would never think so. People are funny that way. There is no rhyme or reason to the beauty of the human species. A cold piece of metal needs hard facts. The secret ingredient is .........
    73. Re:Even beyond that... by Bardez · · Score: 1

      Hate to be the guy that argues without proof, but I swear I've read studies where attraction and beauty is defined by cleanness (i.e.: the NEED for makeup = bad) and symmetry of the face... I think it was symmetrical amongst peers or something like that, if they look like a lot of other people, as well as "mirror image" symmetry of the face itself.

      --
      Perception is the thin dividing line between reality and fiction.
    74. Re:Even beyond that... by rifter · · Score: 1

      void* girl?

      Are you saying that all girls are empty inside?

      He's saying they don't return anything useful.

      At least not valid data. :D

    75. Re:Even beyond that... by rifter · · Score: 1

      We call it "beauty" but it's really about our own genes, and ensuring our mate is healthy enough to survive nature's harshness.

      And alcohol is the way we endure their harshness. But that's how we ended up in this mess in the first place. :D

    76. Re:Even beyond that... by rifter · · Score: 1

      No, because there are no empirical standards for beauty. Someone I find beautiful can be and often is dull or ugly to someone else.

      Or they can say that because they are jealous, or because they are using a nonphysical standard, like personality.

    77. Re:Even beyond that... by rifter · · Score: 1

      When I hear someone prettier than me complain that people don't take them seriously because they are beautiful, it generally annoys me... at least they're getting some attention at all.

      That's usually what they're trying to get when they say that to you. They want attention and they want you to take their requests seriously. People could be falling all over themselves to get them whatever it is they want, but it's not enough for them. Anyone who complains with the old saw that they are not being taken seriously because they are sooo beautiful is a needy whining bitch that craves validation. You have to agree with the premise that they are so blindingly stunningly beautiful that all reason comes to an end at their event horizon, and further that they have such great contributions to the world that it is a travesty they are being ignored for five minutes. It's really hard to take someone like that seriously. No you're not being ignored because you are beautiful. People don't take you seriously because you are full of shit and always trying to manipulate people with sob stories.

      But seriously ... it's not even possible for this to happen. Yes everytime a female scientist has an article on slashdot there are 500 posts about her breasts versus one about her theories. Even NASA has a laugh with their "mountains of mars" article. But despite our piggish behaviour you can guarantee every time a beautiful woman presents a beautiful theory men will hang on her every word. Especially nerds, who are suckers for nerd chicks. Hell, people listen to Condaleeza Rice don't they? They even tried to put theories in Monica Lewinsky's mouth!

    78. Re:Even beyond that... by rifter · · Score: 1

      "All beautiful women who have been stalked, abused, or raped because they are physically attractive, may beg to differ."

      I think that every ugly woman who has been stalked, abused, or raped irrelevant of their physical appearance may beg to differ with you.

      Exactly. Rape, stalking and abuse are not about sex. It's about power. The perpetrator desires power over their victim, in which case someone less attractive, overweight, elderly, etc might actually make a better target. Either way sexual attraction is not the most important determiing factor here.

    79. Re:Even beyond that... by geekoid · · Score: 1

      haha, you're not really that stupid are you?
      Beauty has nothing to do with those events.

      It has been documented over, and over that attractive people have an easier time getting there way.

      --
      The Kruger Dunning explains most post on /. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect
    80. Re:Even beyond that... by geminidomino · · Score: 1

      See OKCupid.com. Apparently that's what they're working towards (and how I met my new girlfriend. :)

  18. Screenshot by Paul+Slocum · · Score: 1

    Here's a screenshot from the main UI.

  19. Digital Misogyny by crymeph0 · · Score: 3, Funny

    On the bright side, this should encourage more women to enter the science and engineering fields, if for no other reason than to crack into this system and perform the digital equivalent of dumping your cocktail on your head. I think training it to rank goatse as aesthetically pleasing would do the trick.

    --
    It should be illegal to say that freedom of speech should be limited.
  20. Intelligence by sveard · · Score: 1

    That's artificial, superficial intelligence

  21. That's odd by Tablizer · · Score: 1

    80% of the code is devoted to breast measurements ;-P

  22. Honestly, I don't see what's difficult by evolvearth · · Score: 1

    From my understanding, according to various comments from different women, male attractiveness stems from just a few factors: sharp facial features instead of rounded features tend to be more attractive, as well as tanned skin and light facial hair. Apparently, the butt chin is also seen as very masculine and attractive.

  23. Strong Genetic Diversity? by Prien715 · · Score: 1

    I would assume that, evolutionarily speaking, one strong criterion for a perspective mate is finding a partner to provide offspring with different genetic material. Since I assume facial characteristics are a result of genes, I'd assume that different people would find people attractive differently based on their own set of genes. To use a never-before-used analogy, finding the "best" woman is like finding the "best" wine for a given meal -- it all depends on what you're eating.

    --
    -- Political fascism requires a Fuhrer.
  24. OR As Paul Graham Noted In ANSI Common Lisp by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0


    artificial stupidiy.

    Sincerely,
    Kilgore Trout, Just Another Lisp Hacker

  25. Symmetry by Reality+Master+101 · · Score: 5, Interesting

    I read an article a while back that made the point that one of the biggest factors in attractiveness was symmetry. The "perfect" face doesn't have any features out of alignment. There was another study that made the point that "averaging" faces produced more attractiveness, but this was actually the wrong conclusion. It was the averaging process that smoothed out features into perfect alignment.

    Symmetry actually makes sense. The more messed up someone's face is from ideal, the worse their genetics could be. Of course, there are other factors such as shiny hair, clear skin, sharp cheekbones, fitness, which all factor back to health.

    --
    Sometimes it's best to just let stupid people be stupid.
    1. Re:Symmetry by Hannah+E.+Davis · · Score: 1

      I think that's true to an extent, but something about a perfectly symmetrical and idealized face (perfect hair, perfect skin, perfect teeth, etc.) just creeps me the hell out. And no, I'm not just being jealous because I don't look like that myself -- I've met the occasional male actor, and although objectively, they looked good, their looks still made me feel distinctly uneasy. Maybe it's just my brain reacting poorly to something that seems too good to be true, or maybe there actually is a genetic benefit to moderately "flawed" features.

      In any case, although there's certainly a limit as to how many flaws I'm willing to tolerate, I prefer to date men who look human.

    2. Re:Symmetry by The+One+and+Only · · Score: 1

      I think the "perfect" face is one that is almost perfectly symmetric except for one small asymmetry. For instance, Marilyn Monroe's famed beauty mark, the differing shapes of Keira Knightly's eyebrows, and so forth.

      --
      In Repressive Burma, it's not just your connection that dies. slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=314547&cid=20819199
    3. Re:Symmetry by SoupIsGoodFood_42 · · Score: 1

      Not just symmetry, but proportion, too. There was a doco on the BBC a while back about beauty where someone had developed a kind of computerised wire-frame mask (with no set dimensions) using the golden ratio in some of the proportions. They found that pretty much anyone who was considered beautiful by society, such as some actors and models etc., had proportions that matched the mask, even across a wide varity of ethnicities and general differences in facial strcuture.

    4. Re:Symmetry by SoupGuru · · Score: 1

      I heard once that there are only two main factors of attractiveness that crosses all cultural boundaries. Health and youth. Sure, they are pretty vague terms but it makes sense.

      --
      What doesn't kill you only delays the inevitable
    5. Re:Symmetry by TerranFury · · Score: 1

      Indeed. In Photoshop, I've done this with photos of my own face. It looks like CG, or an alien's attempt at producing a human face. This could, admittedly, be less to do with symmetry and more to do with unnatural lighting (if one side is lit, you'd expect the other to be slightly shadowed.) Nevertheless, I think it's interesting, so you might want to try it sometime with your favorite photo editor!

    6. Re:Symmetry by xPsi · · Score: 1

      Symmetry actually makes sense. The more messed up someone's face is from ideal, the worse their genetics could be.

      Hey, some of us call that asymmetry "character"!
      --
      i\hbar\dot{\psi}=\hat{H}\psi
  26. What I'm interested in by lyml · · Score: 1

    Is there anywhere where one could get ahold of the sourcecode to this software, or even a binary. How can this be news for nerds without a proper link to the source? ;)

    1. Re:What I'm interested in by mapleneckblues · · Score: 1

      It was an MS funded project.

  27. Far more useful than the face... by Dan+Posluns · · Score: 1

    Do some basic curve fitting of a woman's front and profile to a couple of splines and I'll write you software to measure the number of beers it will take either me or her...

  28. Has it already judged by Lewrker · · Score: 0

    all Miss World contestants as horrible abominations ?

  29. Was the computer gay? by PC+and+Sony+Fanboy · · Score: 1

    So, was this a study to determine if the women were attractive to men? Or if they were attractive in general? And do men and queer women look for the same qualities in women? (hint: they don't) ... so ... I guess this computer is straight.

    The big question, what if the computer doing the rating was a fruit?

    1. Re:Was the computer gay? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

      ... so ... I guess this computer is straight.

      The big question, what if the computer doing the rating was a fruit?


      Then it would prefer bananas over a lovely pair of coconuts.

    2. Re:Was the computer gay? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I don't think that they used Apples...

    3. Re:Was the computer gay? by zaxus · · Score: 1

      This will be off-topic, but...

      Quoth PC and Sony Fanboy:
      And do men and queer women look for the same qualities in women?

      I've always wondered that, but never had the right moment to ask one of my lesbian friends (they were all coworkers, so not always easy to discuss that sort of thing). What do lesbians look for that is different than what men look for in a woman?

      --
      /. zen: Imagine a Beowulf cluster of Beowulf clusters...
    4. Re:Was the computer gay? by PC+and+Sony+Fanboy · · Score: 1

      girls don't discriminate as much as men, when looking for other girls (not physically). There are also some differences in the behaviour traits they look for, like avoiding 'girly girls', etc... but nothing you couldn't guess.

  30. Skin smoothness by superstition222 · · Score: 5, Interesting

    The theory from some is that this averaging resulted in an illusory correlation between average and beautiful due to the fact that the averaging process improved the appearance/smoothness of skin. People apparently really really like good skin.

    1. Re:Skin smoothness by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      One reason is, blemished skin can be a sign of ill health, disease, or bad hygiene. This has both personal safety and reproductive implications. So evolutionarily, we may have come to evaluate smooth skin as desirable because of safety. Heaven knows what effect tattoos will have on human natural selection. But anything that helps trailer trash reproduce can't be good for the species. All tramp stamps should be mandated by law to carry small print saying "Get your herpes here".

    2. Re:Skin smoothness by pablodiazgutierrez · · Score: 1

      I would imagine that another reason might be that what you could call "imperfections" are random deviations from some measure of symmetry (which has been shown as one of the most determining factors that influence beauty). Averaging random and independent deviations would necessarily converge towards symmetry.

    3. Re:Skin smoothness by phantomfive · · Score: 2, Insightful

      I would mention that Cindy Crawford had a mole on her face. In fact, at one time 'beauty marks' were considered highly attractive in all women, so much so that they would apply then with makeup if they had none of their own. What does that do to the symmetrical theory?

      --
      Qxe4
    4. Re:Skin smoothness by jeffmeden · · Score: 1
      What does that do to the symmetrical theory?

      That fad went away just as fast as it appeared. Symmetry at its finest.

  31. However, software suffered from a fatal bug... by Maxo-Texas · · Score: 1

    They couldn't get it to actually look up at women's faces whenever they wore an open top.

    --
    She was like chocolate when she drank... semi-sweet at first and then increasingly bitter.
  32. Old news by mcpkaaos · · Score: 2, Funny

    Men have been judging women by their software for ages.

    --
    It goes from God, to Jerry, to me.
  33. We knew that by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Interesting

    What we're looking for is a healthy specimen to breed with. We will judge the health of said specimen based on our own body type. For instance, if we have long fingers, we will find long fingers attractive and vice versa. There really isn't a godlike ideal that we strive for. We just want someone healthy who can give us healthy children. In that regard, the way the body curves is just as important as the face, if not more so. Somehow we think that judging beauty based on the face is pure while judging on the basis of other bodily characteristics is less pure. Not so. When us guys get all excited about a woman's secondary sexual characteristics, we're just thinking about the good of the children.

  34. Now all we need by Hesperus · · Score: 1

    ...is software that can drink beer, and listen to music for us. While we're at it let's code up something that can relieve us of our tedious skiing, flying, and reading habits.

    --
    ____________________________________

    -- I beleve you'll like this -->
  35. Of course by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
    Apparently, men' faces are more difficult to grade.

    That's because in most pictures of men's faces, you can't see their wallet.

  36. Silly Guys by iark · · Score: 1

    This whole men's attractiveness would be sorted in a jiffy if they had some GAY SCIENTISTS on board! I can recommend a few able-bodies in Tel-Aviv.

  37. Face? by PPH · · Score: 1

    Wrong anatomical part.

    --
    Have gnu, will travel.
  38. Money spent better elsewhere... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Why are we wasting this money on researching this when we could be using this money on research to make women prettier.

    Or better yet, use this money at the gentleman's club. ;-)

  39. Shallow HAL? by OutSourcingIsTreason · · Score: 2, Funny

    They made a movie about it.

    --
    "Fascism should more properly be called corporatism because it is the merger of state and corporate power." -- Mussolini
    1. Re:Shallow HAL? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I was sure it was always Hardware that determined this.

  40. Something ommitted by Pojut · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Something I have noticed is that the more intelligent a woman is, the more attractive she looks when showing certain emotions.

    An intelligent woman looks highly attractive when confused...you can almost see the gears working in her head, trying to figure it out. An unintelligent woman just has a dumb confused look on her face.

    From what I have seen, intelligent women tend to not necessarily have more attractive facial features, but a more attractive way of showing their emotion and reaction to things. Not something that is commonly thought about.

    1. Re:Something ommitted by megaditto · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Yeah, or maybe their teachers and parents put more effort into educating them because these girls "looked smart."

      --
      Obama likes poor people so much, he wants to make more of them.
    2. Re:Something ommitted by JacquesDemien · · Score: 0

      If I had mod points I would mod you +100. So very true indeed. I wonder if, perhaps, this be considered true also for men?

    3. Re:Something ommitted by monoqlith · · Score: 2, Funny

      Something I've noticed is the attractiveness of women is directly proportional to how insulted they are when a computer scientist asks them out.

    4. Re:Something ommitted by kiracatgirl · · Score: 2, Funny

      You just made all of my social interactions with male peers for the past eight or nine years make sense in a handful of sentences, and for that I must thank you.

    5. Re:Something ommitted by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      He's wrong, you know.

    6. Re:Something ommitted by Doctor+Faustus · · Score: 1

      Every complex question has a simple, easy-to-understand wrong answer.

    7. Re:Something ommitted by Pojut · · Score: 1

      "Dealing with complexity is an inefficient and unnecessary waste of time, attention and mental energy. There is never any justification for things being complex when they could be simple. "

      -Edward de Bono

  41. schmaverage by rodentia · · Score: 1

    From TFA:

    The research revealed that faces considered beautiful are average - with no extreme facial characteristics.

    The procedure would seem to eliminate edge cases offensive to some. Sort of begs the question of semantics of beauty don't it? What could possibly be beautiful in any true sense about an average.

    Middlebrow is not the same as tasteful and inoffensive is not the same as impressive.

    --
    illegitimii non ingravare
  42. Vast systems already exist to grade men. by netsavior · · Score: 1

    Apparently, men' faces are more difficult to grade."


    Most computer programmers find it trivial to take the short-cut and run a credit score and bank account balance. This is a much more accurate portrayl of men's attractiveness anyway.
  43. How abt feeding Hillary's pic into it? by theneb · · Score: 0

    I want to use it to judge her electability. Hopefully the software wont try to "steal" memory from other "resources" and in the process "crash" the whole system.

  44. WOOHOO! SWEET! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    With my trusty computer to help me, I'll never have to be burdened with looking at women again!!!

    Wait ...

    Oh Dear.

    <cry>

  45. Not to mention... by Jane+Q.+Public · · Score: 1

    Then there are such things as racial, regional and cultural variations in ideas of "beauty".

    I agree; this does nothing but fancy correlations of faces with judgments of beauty made by a small sample of "instructors". If you were to increase the number of instructors, especially if you made them more diverse (say by region and culture), you would end up with a meaningless hodge-podge... the more meaningless the larger the sample.

  46. Beauty by gsmraxe · · Score: 1

    Beauty is only skin deep...But ugly goes straight to the bone!

  47. Men Obsolete by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    What good are men now that computers can do the one thing they were good at, picking out attractivce women?

  48. What is the purpose of this? by yurivr · · Score: 1

    I understand that this is an interesting research topic but is there some type of use that can be derived from this in the real world. Why would an AI care how statistically attractive you are, and whu would we want an AI evaluating our appearance? After all, I thought the purpose of aesthetic beauty was to help you find a mate... so the robotic equation does not really... compute. (que fembot jokes) "Robot, Robot, in the server [wall]... who is the statistical outlier among them all?"

  49. Why men's faces are more difficult to grade by spazoid12 · · Score: 0, Redundant

    "Apparently, men' faces are more difficult to grade."

    This is because you can't typically see a man's wallet in a photo of his face.

  50. Needs a date by msgtomatt · · Score: 1

    Seriously, stop humping your keyboard and get a date! (algorithm: Locate eyes, look ~17inches down, score proportional to size of round bulges)

  51. what of love? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I fell in love, unexpectedly, with a woman who was not a classic beauty.

    Within a handful of months, I noticed I was finding women with facial and body characteristics similar to hers more attractive than the magazine beauties I normally ogled. Indeed, the model types started looking odd to me.

    Now add in cultural and racial preferences and this "breakthrough" starts sounding like "bullshit".

    1. Re:what of love? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      If you want to be happy for the rest of your life, never make a pretty woman your wife. If you want my personal point of view, get an ugly girl to marry you.

  52. Re:HotOrNot Turing test - exists! by jab · · Score: 1

    It's called HotCaptcha

  53. "men's faces are more difficult to grade" ... by quixote9 · · Score: 1

    Only for men. You'll notice the gender of the bright wits doing the "research."

  54. Software already exisits by Special650 · · Score: 2, Informative

    Its called "Am I hot or not?" I won't even google it to see if it still is there

  55. WHY???? by AlecC · · Score: 1

    In the name of God, WHY? The whole point of being a man (or a gay woman etc.) is so you can make your own estimation of women's beauty. One of the things I definitely DO NOT need a computer to do is to look at women for me. Many other things I may try and get computers to do for me - some sensible, some not. But I'll look at my own women, thank you very much,

    --
    Consciousness is an illusion caused by an excess of self consciousness.
    1. Re:WHY???? by drawfour · · Score: 1

      Think about the applications for finding porn. You train the software to your ideal of beauty, then hook it into some automated porn-crawler. In the end, you only have pictures of women you find beautiful.

    2. Re:WHY???? by AlecC · · Score: 1

      I may be unselective, but while I don't find every woman beautiful, I have no trouble finding pictures of beautiful women without the assistance of a computer.

      --
      Consciousness is an illusion caused by an excess of self consciousness.
  56. Wow, so much bitterness by ZombieRoboNinja · · Score: 1

    I dunno if it really is purely wealth, power and social position. I know plenty of women who like guys who aren't attractive OR wealthy/powerful/popular.

    Probably the biggest issue is that our society has a bunch of different "sexy" archetypes for men. Men can be Ashton-Kutcher-hot, young and muscular and so on, or George-Clooney-hot, older and more distinguished, or nerdy-but-hot or ravishing-seducer-hot or football-player-hot or whatever.

    Women are basically judged on a single metric: how close they look to a skinny 16-year-old with big boobs. There are variations on the theme, and of course there are plenty of men and women who look for other things in women, but that's the basic societal ideal.

  57. This being slashdot... by killmenow · · Score: 1

    ...Something about Natalie Portman... ...hot grits...

  58. Software / Hardware / Females by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I have a piece of software that automatically turns into a piece of hardware whenever I encounter an attractive female.

  59. Re:Even beyond that... - Not So Fast. by slas6654 · · Score: 0

    It is an admirable notion to think beauty is purely subjective. I think, in some actuality, scientists have research that says otherwise.

    Do a search on the Golden Ratio. There is tested algorithm for beauty. Whether the formula is 100% accurate, is a different story. Statistically though, my understanding is that the formula has been proven.

    (eg. http://www.intmath.com/Numbers/mathOfBeauty.php).

  60. Spammers will rejoice by wuchang · · Score: 1

    Now they'll be able to Pwn all those sites protected by Hot CAPTCHAhttp://www.hotcaptcha.com/...

  61. Men more difficult by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    "Apparently, men' faces are more difficult to grade."
    Because you don't keep your wallet on your face.

  62. Absolutely Amazing! by hyades1 · · Score: 1

    Finally, after countless hours of work by thousands of fantastically intelligent hardware and software designers, we have reached a seminal point in the development of this incredible machine that we call the computer. At long last, somebody has developed a program that, with training, might actually be as smart as my dick.

    And women dare to complain that we men spend too much time "thinking with the wrong head"!

    --
    I've calculated my velocity with such exquisite precision that I have no idea where I am.
  63. rating scale by the+brown+guy · · Score: 1

    How about a bell curve with an ideal of thrity six twenny fo thirty six, with the booty weighted most hehe.

    --
    Orbis terrarum est non altus satis
  64. Is it just me.. by siddster · · Score: 1

    Or is this an April Fool's joke??

  65. We don't by manifoldronin · · Score: 1
    But the researchers couldn't get laid, so...

    Oh wait, that would mean that they are slashdotters, too...

    --
    Tyranny isn't the worst enemy of a democracy. Cynicism is.
  66. Why would you need a machine to do this??? by MoxFulder · · Score: 1

    Last time I checked, there is no shortage of real, live humans willing to sit around and rate pictures of women all day long. Even on weekdays when they're supposed to be working :-P

    Hotornot.com, anyone?

  67. Symmetry? by TheSambassador · · Score: 1

    It's been shown that symmetry is an important factor in terms of our judgement of beauty (and I'm sure that there are others). Granted, there are always people who have their quirks, but in general we do tend to find certain qualities univerally attractive.

  68. Beauty is often most notable in motion by zibix · · Score: 0

    In my experience, event the most plain face can light up in motion. Is it a coincidence that it's called "emotion"? Although it's extremely cool that there's software to check this. I want the 2.0 version... An upscale "Am I hot or Not" website where you can upload your potential date's picture and get a score card.

  69. HotOrNotBot by MrGHemp · · Score: 1

    I'm guessing it's only a matter of time before some creates a bot from this software and unleases it on HotOrNot.com... oh, or even more dastardly tracks the responses to the Hot or Not votes you make, builds a profile of the woman you are most attracted to... and use a virtual "your ideal woman" in all sorts of advertising... I can imagine the double click custom ads this would produce... "but she was sooo hot, i had to click"... hehe

  70. Software? by trevdak · · Score: 1

    Software? Only if she's ugly. Hardware if she's cute.

  71. Personally by nevillethedevil · · Score: 1

    I judge the level of attractiveness by my HARDware! (Thanks I'll be here all week)

    --
    Be gone from my sight or prepare to feel my flaming wraith!
  72. Riiiight... by Jeppe+Utzon · · Score: 1

    ... this software has been designed to make aesthetic judgments -- after training. So... these "computer scientists" call up loads of model agencies and strip bars and ask for loads of beautiful girls to stop by "the lab" - all in the name of science? I bet the next version of their sortware will rate naked bodies. And I bet that also this time male bodies will, for some obscure and yet very convenient reason, also be unquantifiable and thus forcing them to look only a naked girls. Even Ferris Bueller couldn't have come up with a ploy this shrewd.
  73. Someone doesn't know the definition of empirical by DavidShor · · Score: 1
    So the presence of error completely negates a empirical metric? Remember, the probability that two observers making a real valued measurement achieve the same result is zero.

    If a rule always held up perfectly(or even usually held up perfectly) or generated the same results each time it was applied, it would be a theoretical rule, not an empirical one. It's the difference between Netwon's law of Acceleration and Orkun's rule.

  74. very linear perception of beauty by reiisi · · Score: 2, Interesting

    In a certain city, an attractive girl gets unwanted attention. Take the same girl to a different city, and nobody notices her.

    Until she starts acting "cute".

    Beauty and attractiveness are somewhat separate concepts, but, as my mother used to say, "Beauty is as beauty does."

    Look at Anni-Frid Lyngstad and Agnetha Fältskog, or, for that matter, the Wilson sisters. I don't know about you, but I didn't think they were either attractive or beautiful until I'd been listening to their music for several years.

    Or, for that matter, look at the Mona Lisa. I'm still not sure what the fuss is there.

    Any way, happy Aril 1st.

    --
    Computer memory is just fancy paper, CPUs just fancy pens with fancy erasers; the 'net is just a fancy backyard fence.
    1. Re:very linear perception of beauty by Cadallin · · Score: 2, Interesting

      I've never seen anyone seriously argue that the woman depicted in the Mona Lisa (if it is actually a woman, there is considerable debate on that point) is attractive. Which has very little to do with how significant a painting is judged to be. If it did, Alberto Vargas would be listed as one of the greatest masters of western art. http://fineart.elib.com/fineart.php?prev=Ethnicity/Peruvian-American&dir=Site_index%2FPeruvian-American%2FVargas

  75. Re:Someone doesn't know the definition of empirica by Das+Modell · · Score: 0, Redundant

    There are no empirical standards for beauty.

  76. Re:HotOrNot Turing test - exists! by Facegarden · · Score: 1

    Yeah, i was gonna bring that up. When this software can solve that Captcha, i'll be blown away. I think that honestly, that's the kind of direction captcha's need to go (though something a bit more... professional). Sometimes i can't even read the letters on captcha's these days (and no, i'm not a computer), but i can always tell the difference between a good looking girl and some unattractive girls (or guys). -Taylor

    --
    Worldwide Military budgets: $2100 billion. Worldwide Space Exploration budgets: $38 billion. Really, world? Really?
  77. Or it could be backwards by reiisi · · Score: 1

    Sexual attractiveness maintained in public after marriage is often an influence in undoing the marriage. It may be that asymmetry is more generally attractive. (The difference between distractive and attractive is very often more a matter of attitude than perception.)

    One thing I'm sure of is that the best way to be attractive is to let people know you want attention without letting people know you want attention.

    --
    Computer memory is just fancy paper, CPUs just fancy pens with fancy erasers; the 'net is just a fancy backyard fence.
  78. Being an Israeli team... by InvisblePinkUnicorn · · Score: 1

    They're destined to pick women who are younger versions of their mothers.

  79. very much cultural by reiisi · · Score: 1

    Living in Japan for a long time shows me two things:

    There are women (and men) considered attractive in Japan who would be considered attractive in the US, but there are also a lot of women (and men) who are considered attractive in Japan who would be considered downright ugly in the US.

    Consensus gives you lowest common denominator, as someone else commented already.

    --
    Computer memory is just fancy paper, CPUs just fancy pens with fancy erasers; the 'net is just a fancy backyard fence.
  80. Apparently, men' faces are more difficult to grade by Snaller · · Score: 1

    And not interesting to the mail scientists ;)

    Though unless i can train the software, I strongly doubt I shall agree with its findings.

    --
    If Google really cared they would fix Android Chrome to reflow text, instead of discriminating
  81. Beauty is a subject full of contradictions by reiisi · · Score: 1

    and this is a good example of the contradictions of beauty.

    People who have been married for a long time start to look like each other.

    I don't know what your study says, but watching my friends, they tend to oooh and aaahh over people who are somewhat, but not too much different in appearance from their own family. The people they tend to go out with and stay with tend to have more features in common.

    --
    Computer memory is just fancy paper, CPUs just fancy pens with fancy erasers; the 'net is just a fancy backyard fence.
    1. Re:Beauty is a subject full of contradictions by steelfood · · Score: 1

      I have never seen this, but if what you observe does generally apply, this may be true as relationships progress from one predominantly of romance to one that is more family-oriented. In fact, I've found more correlation between similar interests and friendship, as well as between similar and contrasting personalities and friendship, than anything related to appearance.

      But also remember that the study says nothing about people who look similar being repulsive; they're just not sexually attractive to each other. So perhaps it's a perfect for those who are primarily interested in that "just friends" type of relationship.

      --
      "If a nation expects to be ignorant and free in a state of civilization, it expects what never was and never will be."
  82. male by Snaller · · Score: 1

    I know, but you can't edit the comments here...

    --
    If Google really cared they would fix Android Chrome to reflow text, instead of discriminating
  83. Golden ration was a Greek invention by reiisi · · Score: 1

    The golden ration works for Greeks. Some Greeks.

    It doesn't seem to work quite the same for Japanese.

    --
    Computer memory is just fancy paper, CPUs just fancy pens with fancy erasers; the 'net is just a fancy backyard fence.
  84. Least ugly == LCD? by reiisi · · Score: 1

    Is least ugly basically the lowest common denominator?

    (Somebody say something about liquid crystal display here, okay?)

    --
    Computer memory is just fancy paper, CPUs just fancy pens with fancy erasers; the 'net is just a fancy backyard fence.
    1. Re:Least ugly == LCD? by 5of0 · · Score: 1

      I was wondering what liquid crystal displays had to do with ugliness. They're actually kind of in the middle, between CRT's and plasma...

      --
      You all have Oo.o and Firefox, so get World Wind.
    2. Re:Least ugly == LCD? by Joebert · · Score: 1

      There's nothing like a 70" plasma HDTV with close up titties bouncing on the screen. I dare say not even the real thing is that spectacular.

      --
      Wanna fight ? Bend over, stick your head up your ass, and fight for air.
  85. peer pressure? by reiisi · · Score: 1

    We all know what the entertainment industry is pushing out these days.

    Have you analyzed your empiricals to cancel out the Hollywood effect?

    If you look at the works of art of historical cultures, can we be sure that the standards we claim now are very universal?

    --
    Computer memory is just fancy paper, CPUs just fancy pens with fancy erasers; the 'net is just a fancy backyard fence.
  86. middle number not binary by reiisi · · Score: 1

    and varies from time to time.

    The word "hit" in the definition also tends to bias the rank, I think.

    --
    Computer memory is just fancy paper, CPUs just fancy pens with fancy erasers; the 'net is just a fancy backyard fence.
  87. women's beauty indeed. by sinserve · · Score: 1

    It's funny how the male face is above judgment, much less by automated critical judgment.

  88. Beauty is in the algorithm of the beholder by syousef · · Score: 1

    Isn't this kind of hand waving. Beauty is subjective and qualitative. People will rank others differently and for different reasons. So along comes a computer scientist and applies and algorithm and states that it rates people's beauty. Well sure it does, but whose idea of attractiveness is being emulated. The computer can never be "wrong". At best they might claim that within a particular culture or population, averaged results will match their algorithm. If something isn't testable and falsifiable it's not science.

    --
    These posts express my own personal views, not those of my employer
  89. Actually most people are asymmetric ... by pbhj · · Score: 1

    >>> "Joking aside, most people already are symmetrical, so it would definitely stand out for people who aren't."

    Take a photo of yourself, photoshop (but use Gimp, cause you're a geek right!) it to mirror half the face. You look freaky, that's not what you normally look like is it.

    Some research was done on this at St.Andrews University, Fife, UK (I studied Phys / Maths there) at the time they published pics in all the daily papers of a theoretical beauty (composite).

    FWIW.

  90. Re:HotOrNot Turing test - exists! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    That thing is awesome. And I am reassured of my heterosexuality by my complete inability to pick a winning combo on the male version.

  91. Art becomes reality: Looker (1981) by iamcf13 · · Score: 1

    The movie Looker (1981):

    http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0082677/

    Great 'cover version' of 'Looker Theme' from Looker:

    http://medievalfantasy.com/downloads.html

    If Looks Could Kill (Looker Mix)DeVorzon/Schulte

    also another Looker 'track' there:

    The Final Battle(Donovan Mix) DeVorzon/Schulte

    No direct links to the .mp3's to minimze Slashdotting.

    Perhaps the two .mp3s could be mirrored somewhere else to save the guy's bandwidth?

    Enjoy!

    P.S. Not a shill, I just thought mentioning a movie which depicts using computer software to grade feminine beauty was appropriate. And the 'Looker Mix' .mp3 track mentioned above is great!

  92. Wait... by LuNa7ic · · Score: 1

    I thought emacs already had a function for this?

    --
    *runs*
  93. comarison to Anonymous's opinion by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    i wonder how this algorithm would match up to the results by the "nerual network" of Anonymous on imageboards like http://lolikun.org/

  94. You forgot about 7 of 9! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    > Out of 7!!! Who the #$%! ever said "Oh that chick is a 7, I need to do her now!"

    What about 7 of 9?

  95. Beauty by memorycardfull · · Score: 1

    Is in the algorithm of the beholder.

  96. FUCKING JEW HAS OBSESSED INTEREST IN WOMAN by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Especially East Asian, Arab, and kiddie.

  97. I disagree ... by ScrewMaster · · Score: 1

    Women's Attractiveness Judged by Software

    As someone who has worked on embedded systems, I'd say attractiveness is best judged by your firmware.

    --
    The higher the technology, the sharper that two-edged sword.
  98. Re:Someone doesn't know the definition of empirica by MrNaz · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Yes, but there is empirical evidence of highly parallel preferences among males that indicate the presence of common perceptions regarding what constitutes beauty.

    The fact that there are no empirical standards for beauty is not due to the absence of any common standards for beauty (albeit not universally applicable), rather our inability to represent the metrics of the mind using mathematical or linguistic representations.

    --
    I hate printers.
  99. already been done by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    "Assessing facial beauty through proportion analysis by image processing and supervised learning" by Gunes and Piccardi. (Look it up on Google Scholar). This looks very similar. I did a project on this type of thing in a class last semester.

  100. Beer input and time of night part of algorithm??? by syousef · · Score: 1

    For realism there should be a vessel that accepts beer, weighs it or otherwise monitors its level, and a slow leak into another container (preferably a toilet bowl). The more full the first container, and the later in the night it is, the more aesthetically pleasing every woman becomes. Once the beer bottle is sufficiently full the algorithm should emulate sleep by pausing until morning, at which time scores return to normal. As a bonus a scream should be heard when the algorithm wakes, particularly if the woman's daytime score is low. Hell fit wheels to it and have it run away in the morning, and you've got the ultimate female rating robot. If the female is sufficiently plastered herself she may not be able to tell the difference!

    --
    These posts express my own personal views, not those of my employer
  101. Thanks for the responce by DavidShor · · Score: 1
    "I took it as trite, but here: Causes of Rape: "Warren Farrell ... [noted] that (male-female) rape statistics show young and sexually attractive females are raped far more often than older, less sexually attractive females."

    What exactly and how broad are your experiences that differ, that would make you a credible authority to refute this?"

    I did some volunteer work at a teenage health clinic, but I don't have any experience with Rape. And disclaimer, I don't have any formal background in criminology(Just math, game theory, some theoretical bio). So no, I'm not a credible authority at all.

    As far as rape and abuse go, they are overwhelmingly committed by people who are close to the victim, not strangers. I don't see how attractiveness would be very relevant when a father or close friend decide to rape somebody. On one hand, you could argue that attractive people tend to have more friends, and therefore more potential rapists. But on the other hand, you could argue that attractive people are alone less. There are a billion other potential explanations(The imagination goes crazy when considering the effects on support structure), and in the absence of actual studies that test attractiveness of rape victims(try to get a grant for that), I'd say there doesn't seem to be a clear explanation. But I could be wrong, let me know.

    Stalking is a different animal. It's usually a mostly emotional process in the mind of a stalker. It's very common for stalkers to be intimidated by beautiful woman, instead going after somewhat uglier but more accessible girls instead. I don't have any statistics for that, but I think the effect is significant enough to throw off a simple linear relationship.

    "Pretty sure I recall that from pre-internet publications, though it circulates to the top, from time to time. The only reference could find offhand is Is acne really a disease?: a theory of acne as an evolutionarily significant, high-order psychoneuroimmune interaction timed to cortical development with a crucial role in mate choice. Medical Hypotheses, Volume 62, Issue 3, Pages 462-469, which is only a summary and merely alludes to my conjecture. You can always drop by a medical library to check it out and post a summary, here. :) I'd like to find a solid reference for it, but alas, the internet has failed me on this one."

    I think I might do that tomorrow. Thanks for the tip, I had never really considered the evolutionary utility of acne.

  102. Chicks before D**** by religious+freak · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Apparently, men's faces are more difficult to grade. Rather, what kind of dude wants to (or perhaps is even able to) code for MALE face attractiveness? I can't help but think the guys coding this said "hey let's do the women faces first, because I don't mind looking at chicks all day", rather than it being too hard.

    Yes, I'm assuming the team was mostly male... hopefully I don't offend anyone with this obvious assumption.
    --
    If you can read this... 01110101 01110010 00100000 01100001 00100000 01100111 01100101 01100101 01101011
  103. Compute this by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
  104. Your score by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    What does the girl's 7 matter if your score is 0?

  105. Flaw in "average" beauty: smooth skin by KWTm · · Score: 2, Informative

    I read a web site somewhere about some German researchers trying to figure out what was "beautiful" by taking eight of the top Miss Germany contestants (including the winner) and algorithmically averaged their eight faces into a ninth composite face. To be fair, the beauty queen contestants had to wear no makeup and have a neutral expression on their face. They let people rank the nine faces in terms of beauty, and it turned out that the non-existent ninth "averaged" face was ranked the most beautiful.

    They then expounded on how people found an average prototypical face the most beautiful.

    When I checked back later with the web site, they had added an addendum to the web site, saying something to the effect of, "Oh, yeah, we also found that, by averaging the photos together, we smoothed out any skin blemishes on the face, and maybe it could be possible that there's a chance that somehow people were just finding that the ninth average face had the smoothest skin and was thus the most beautiful."

    In other words, "We completely forgot to account for the superhumanly flawless skin in the algorithmically generated face, which invalidates all this work we've done, but we've put so much work into this project that we don't want to throw it all into the trash just yet." Kinda like how a PhD candidate researching a breakthrough in space-dwelling aliens might add, at the very end of his thesis, "Oh, or it might have been just ants crawling on the lens of the telescope. Woops."

    --
    404555974007725459910684486621289147856453481154 in hex is "You sank my Battleship?"
    [GPG key in journal]
  106. Female Robot by themagic8ball · · Score: 1

    This will help when I build my girlfriend. :)

  107. Great news! by rabbitfood · · Score: 1

    The Economist ran a Christmas article about 'beauty and success' (http://www.economist.com/displaystory.cfm?story_id=10311266), reporting the real, quantifiable inequalities in society that unfairly penalise the unfair.

    As one of the plug-uglies that live in the UK, where we're promised equality of opportunity on a weekly basis, I've been consistently miffed by the the government's failure to address this kind of discrimination.

    However, if this really is the dawn of a truly objective metric for ugliness, then I'm all in favour. No longer will there be a reason for the government to refuse to determine fairer tax rates, employment contracts, healthcare provision and pension terms for those who lack the facial symmetry of our richer peers, and it should be trivial to calculate them in the data-acquisition phase of our much-heralded Identity Register.

  108. "Attractiveness" is not based on face by izmeister · · Score: 1

    Hundreds of years go, fans of physiognomy and phrenology used facial and skull size characteristics to guess who was a criminal - before they committed the crime. Racists and bigots and racists looks at people's faces to form opinions of intelligence and personality. Nazis used physiognomy to promote their horrific eugenics scheme. Personal attractiveness is not based on judging the facial features of photographs of people we've never met. Yuck. What a disgusting, sexist experiment. The fact that this took place in Israel is even more disturbing to me.

  109. Re:Even beyond that... MOD UP! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    You sir, win 1000 internets.

  110. If it's still soft... by cylcyl · · Score: 1

    If it's still soft... wouldn't that mean the woman's not that attractive? I think that the most attractive women have the ability to turn software to hardware

  111. Re:Even beyond that... - Not So Fast. by Spellvexit · · Score: 1

    I remember watching a television program on this very subject, where a plastic surgeon had developed a "golden ratio" framework to overlay on top of faces to figure out where a face needed "work." The interesting thing is that when it was overlaid atop the image of Tom Cruise, everything lined up -- eyes, jawbone, nose, basically all of the key features. Now some readers here may complain that he's not good looking, but he's enormously popular, and I doubt that the number one reason for his popularity is his virtuoso acting ability.

    To me, the golden ratio really does seem to be an adequate rule of thumb. If nothing else, it sure makes for an interesting framework to work within when judging why somebody falls short of perfection!

    --
    The moon may be smaller than the earth, but it's much farther away!
  112. Beauty highly correlates with symmetry, ratios by AHumbleOpinion · · Score: 1

    I'm not aware of any actual empirical standard of beauty.

    According to research that I ran across in a university library years ago, beauty highly correlates with the symmetry of facial features. Such symmetry is believed to be an indicator of genetic health.

    According to a show on the discovery channel certain proportions and ratios are considered universally attractive, culturally independent. This included both facial and body ratios. It didn't really matter whether the culture preferred skinny or normal body types, the favored ratios of the features were consistent. IIRC the favored body ratios correlated with child bearing success.

    We are hard wired for "beauty" and it is mathematically based.