How Sex Works: Why We Look, Smell, Taste, Feel, and ACT the Way We Do

Sex fascinates us; it makes or breaks marriages, ruins political careers, and is the backbone of the internet entertainment industry. And yet it is something hidden, as if we were ashamed at its fascination. In my work, I always ask people who come to see me what they do for fun. Of thousands of replies to this question over the years, I have had exactly one person list sex. Surely there are a lot more people than that who find sex something to do for fun. And besides being fun, sex is interesting. It is one of those universal activities that you can never learn everything about or participate in all its variants. There are many enthusiastic guides about how to have sex (the best of them is _The Guide to Getting It On!_), but if you are more interested in why we have sex and why people do the sexual things they do (including yourself), you are bound to gain insight from _How Sex Works: Why We Look, Smell, Taste, Feel, and Act the Way We Do_ (Harper) by Dr. Sharon Moalem. The author is a neurogeneticist, evolutionary biologist, and physiologist, but he is used to writing for a popular audience, and this book gives lots of facts, from trivial to essential, about a topic that is always interesting. If you had a good sex ed. class (bet you didn't), many of the subjects in Moalem's book may be familiar, but there is new research in many aspects of sex and new ways of understanding its evolutionary importance, and Moalem has incorporated much of it in a readable and amusing fashion. Sex is pretty costly, and that isn't just because of the price of dinner and a movie. It takes energy, and putting two half-cells together to make a new starter cell for a new individual is enormously complicated and can go wrong in countless ways. On the plus side, it jumbles the genes every generation, which not only makes it hard for parasites and viruses to ride along, but also allows variation in every new individual, enabling evolution to make its changes. Jumbling the genes may be something we are programmed to do. Moalem reviews studies that show how olfactory and visual cues may help us have the best chance of sending good DNA to our progeny. There are also studies to show how sex works internally. The more attracted a woman was to her partner, for instance, the easier and more intense were her orgasms; good orgasms produce more of the hormone oxytocin, which is thought to increase bonding. It's a nice positive feedback system, and indicates how essential good sex is to a good relationship. It would be a sorry sex book that didn't have pages on penis size. Guys, it's time to relax: although only 55% of you are happy with the size of your penis, 85% of women were quite satisfied with their partner's penis size (and though Moalem doesn't say so, some of the remaining 15% must have had dissatisfaction with too big, not too small). But size does matter: condoms have to fit, especially non-latex condoms, which don't have the stretch of the typical ru

HOW SEX WORKS: WHY WE LOOK, SMELL, TASTE, FEEL, AND ACT THE WAY WE DO comes packed with a satisfying blend of anecdotes and insights into myths and scientific revolutions alike and provides a fine historical survey of medical research into sex. From how male virility is fueled by competition to why being in love encourages fidelity, chapters survey the excitement, idea and reality of sex in a lively manner perfect for both health and general-interest libraries.

A surprising elucidation of the latest findings on sex and evolution. Get a handle on the evolutionary view behind some of the behaviors we see in the opposite gender. Moalem unfolds some interesting insights into why women (and men) will behave the way they do. The book doesn't necessarily advocate acting on our baser instinct but can come in handy in understanding the "why" behind certain behaviors.

I truly enjoyed reading this book. It was nice to be able to pick up a book on the subject of sex and actually learn something new. It made me think of sex in a new perspective. Information was referenced with numerous research studies and examples. I also appreciated the author's writing style, and found the chapter titles brilliant. Very engaging!

Most books on sex focus on either the titillating or the medical - on relationships or the nasty little details of STI's. Moalem's book not only discusses both, but also manages to connect the medical and the psychological. I don't think anyone has quite done this since Desmond Morris wrote The Naked Ape. I found myself picking this book up frequently - no matter where I started reading, there was something compelling. Especially the chapter on homosexuality - who knew that this might be triggered by the same gene that causes women to like men - in other words, the gene that promotes heterosexuality in females? And the wide range of sexual behaviours in animals - that male big horn sheep culture is predominantly gay?? A lot of this is not fundamental knowledge, but it sure makes for interesting, fun reading.