蜜芽传媒

What happens in your brain when Cupid鈥檚 arrow strikes? As a teenager, Alison developed an intense crush on George Harrison from the Beatles. But, she wants to know, why do we develop these feelings for pop stars we鈥檝e never actually met? And what potent swirl of neurochemistry drives those fierce emotions?

With neuroscientist Dr. Dean Burnett and evolutionary anthropologist Dr. Anna Machin as their guides, Hannah and Dara investigate everything from the brain鈥檚 chemical fireworks during a crush to the evolutionary perks of love and bonding. Along the way, they dissect teenage infatuations, lifelong love affairs with football teams, and why love can feel as addictive as heroin.

There鈥檚 even a guest appearance from two cute rodents: the monogamous prairie voles and their more, shall we say, commitment-phobic cousins, the montane voles, who gave us early clues about the role of the 鈥榗uddle鈥� hormone oxytocin.

Whether you're a hopeless romantic or a hard-nosed skeptic, prepare to fall head over heels for the science of love.

Contributors:

Dr Anna Machin - evolutionary anthropologist and author of Why We Love
Dr Dean Burnett - honorary research fellow at Cardiff Psychology School, author of The Idiot Brain and The Happy Brain.
Carmine Pariante - Professor of Biological Psychiatry at King鈥檚 College London

Producer: Ilan Goodman
Executive Producer: Alexandra Feachem
A 蜜芽传媒 Studios Audio Production