Hey Kitten, happened to drop by your journal there & i have read your book report there & find it very impressive indeed 
I agreed with phernoob 100% on making this as a sticky 
That book report of yours have good & useful advices there +Reps for your book report from me your friend phat
P.S. I praised you there for making the effort to type & format all the info in your book report there as i know it’s not easy to do the formatting by how i see it. Thanks
Lol!!! Seriously. “But I took the intelligence test in the back of Reader’s Digest. I scored a 110. It says I’m a fucking genius!” Better call MENSA immediately then.
Geez. I would rather tell people I am really stupid (as a blonde this is plausible) - and then when I do something halfway intelligent, people are pleasantly surprised!
That’s why I like the people here - they are not pretentious or pompous. Just people who are really intelligent and curious about science/psychology.
Rep attack is right! Wow, thank you for your compliments on this report. I’m grateful you read it and found it interesting. That’s why I wrote it. So thank you mark-in-dallas, msselva, Tealeaves, bosshank, Phoenix, djacquelyn, PhatSounds, and phernoob and all the people who left nice messages with their reps instead–that includes you, Renny 
and flaming.
And did you catch that? Phernoob said we are all smart and could be professionally certified as above average. About damn time someone noticed, right? Wheeee! You’re quite the smartypants yourself, phernoob. Takes one to know one.
My usual states are eros and ludus too, with a bit of storge. Mania–well sometimes I can’t help it, but it always leaves me feeling dirty afterward. I don’t see how agape is more mature than eros. The two are completely different. Maybe the idea started with the Church because agape is not of the flesh. On the other hand, I am pretty immature, so maybe I’m proving that developmental theory right.
Msselva, I agree about consummate love. sigh You’ll find it, possibly even more than once.
XXOO Kitten
You forgot philia. Storge is one I have rarely heard of, I think it’s mostly used by some social scientists, it’s rare in ancient Greek. Philia , OTOH, is the one I usually encountered in Greek for family affection, and it implies common interests or goals, a shared affiliation. Eros is actually a god or abstraction of lust, I don’t think it’s a verb at all. Agape is not exclusively religious, and it can imply a negative attachment to something unhealthy or foolish.
To be honest, the distinctions are somewhat vague, for instance “the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil” comes from a Biblical verse that actually says philarguria (philo being the root verb), “silver-fondness”). And yet some people would think “philia” has something to do with “brotherly love”.
And ludus is Latin! (game/play)
Daedelus, you are clearly one of the smartest of us smartypantses. How do you know so much?
I’d somehow associated philia with fetishes, like paraphilia. Perhaps the Aristotelian use of the word philia is so broad that Fisher’s source (who I’d now guess isn’t a languages expert) chose more obscure terms and threw in a little latin in order to be more specific about the different types.
Might make sense if I changed the intro sentence to, “We will start with a few modern psychological interpretations of ancient Greek and Latin terms”? It’s a bit clunkier, but maybe more accurate.
No, I wouldn’t change that part honestly. No need to get too wordy.
John Lee, according to Wikipedia, first used those lists of terms in his book Love styles - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia . For instance, English does have words that correspond to some of those Greek words. “Fondness” = “philia”.
You should look up the Sapir-Warf hypothesis some time, as well as challenges to it.
Great report , Kit! Sorry so late replying but I haven’t been here much lately and I missed this!
The begining stages of love…I equate to a state of temporary insanity. That speaks directly to Part II of your report on The Chemicals of Love and Delirium. If I had a little more time I’d expound on it.
Bella
That was a very interesting read, Kitten (although it’s quite late in the hour here). Very much looking forward to reading the second part.
The first stages of love do seem to share quite a bit with intoxication or delirium.
But for now, I’ll just be the one bringing thoughts of hot chocolate and naked men baking…
omg, I don’t know why I couldn’t care to look at the ad!
Saw it…and omg…Do place like that really exist with those kinds of french chefs?! 
if so
I want one! Not only the chocolate…the chef for dessert too
Edit: lol, wow, my brain is recently so dirty…:o
You and me both, Selva! But I didn’t see them offered in any cooking classes.
As for dirty minds, dirty like a bowl that has been used to make deliciously silky chocolate mousse?
(Sorry for hijacking the serious discussion, guys! :o)
So, Kitten… how was your day today? Did you get into any phero-mischief?
My day was great, Daedelus. I think your wishing me well may have made a difference. I managed to find my old bottle of Mystery Boy as I was organizing my armoire. So I wore that because I remembered how good it makes me feel.
Later on, I went over to a friend’s house with some other people and I still had the Mystery Boy on. One of the people I went with is gay, so it occurred to me–a little too late–that I might confuse him. There wasn’t any big effect on him tho, just a tiny bit more touchy than usual and his pupils were huge. The most noticeable effect was that I cracked jokes all over the place and people seemed to find me a whole lot funnier than I really was.
I’ve worked some on Part II of my report…I’m just not sure that my inferences about pheromones and neurotransmitters are correct. Still pondering it.
Much Xs and Os to everyone!
Kitten
LMAO, It appears that you wearing Mystery Boy and him being more touchy and having huge pupils may have had him panicked that he might be turning straight! 
The Chemicals of Love and Delirium, Book Report Part II
Helen Fisher’s overriding theory in her book Why We Love is that “Lust evolved to motivate individuals to seek sexual union with almost any semi-appropriate partner. Romantic love emerged to drive men and women to focus their mating attention on a preferred individual, thereby conserving invaluable courtship time and energy.”
She claims several chemicals are to blame for the countless shenanigans we endure in the name of love. These chemicals are triggered automatically in the brain, and we have very little control over them. In fact, they exert significant control over us! I’m talking about Dopamine, Norepinephrine, Oxytocin, Vasopressin, and Serotonin. And they are all tied to the waxing and waning of Testosterone.
We’re All a Bunch of Crackheads
Together, the following chemicals produce many of the giddy highs we all love about love, such as feeling breathless and carefree and going without food or sleep just to be near the object of our affections.
Testosterone: First things first. Our fun and games all revolve around testosterone. Men and women produce it. But in women, it is buffered and softened by estrogen. This is the hormone that actually drives your sex drive. (One reason a middle aged woman requires more sex is that, due to her reduced estrogen levels, she is finally able to feel the effects of her testosterone more fully.)
Dopamine–In new love, your brain floods with Dopamine, the reward chemical triggered by heroin and cocaine. Dopamine not only increases your sex drive, it releases Testosterone, which further increases your sex drive–and increases Dopamine. Common symptoms of increased Dopamine are euphoria, extremely focused attention, and motivation.
Norepinephrine–(Nor EPP in EFF rin) Norepinephrine is another stimulant that triggers testosterone. It is similar in structure to speed and crystal meth. It is a vital part of the lover’s high. Fisher says it “can generally produce exhilaration, excessive energy, sleeplessness, and loss of appetite.” It can increase your memory for fine detail. (Norepinephrine is also associated with lordosis. Lordosis is when a female mammal assumes the mating position. Hee hee hee.)
Testosterone encourages you to have sex and it increases Dopamine and Norepinephrine levels. And guess what else? Dopamine and Norepinephrine increase Testosterone. So mix Dopamine (pleasure) with Norepiniephrine (mania) and keep pumping the Testosterone (physical drive) and you’ve got yourself a self perpetuating high that’d be the envy of nearly any junkie. You’d think it would never end!
Question: So should we really be allowed to operate heavy machinery while in love?
Settling Down With Snugglebutt
So what happens? Why don’t we all just quit our jobs and turn into crazy bonobo apes? You already know the answer. What happened to all your relationships after about 6-18 months? You stopped caring whether dude or babe walked in on you while you were flossing your teeth and you started calling him or her Snugglebutt. In other words, comfort set in.
This change in relationship status is triggered by chemicals. A natural event occurs to tip the seesaw. Dopamine and Norepinephrine were on top. But now they drop and Serotonin rises. Testosterone also decreases. The chemicals that initiate this change are Oxytocin and Vassopressin. It is known as bonding, and it actually starts to happen during sex!
Oxytocin–The primary female attachment chemical is Oxytocin, but both sexes produce it with similar results. Oxytocin increases for females during sexual stimulation and orgasm. It has a very cuddly effect. Too much Oxytocin can decrease the effect of Dopamine and Norepinephrine.
**Vasopressin–**Vasopressin is not as well documented as Oxytocin. It seems to be primarily a male attachment chemical, also produced by women. It increases for males at orgasm, and makes them feel cuddly.
When Oxytocin and Vasopressin suppress Dopamine and Norepinephrine, Serotonin has a chance to make its comeback. This also lowers testosterone, which starts everything on a new non-sexual self-perpetuating chemical cycle. (Fisher even states that when a man holds a baby in his arms, his level of Testosterone decreases.)
Serotonin–Serotonin is a well-known comforting chemical that makes you feel cozy and at peace. It helps regulate the emotions and even the vomit reflex. Too little Serotonin can generate obsessive thinking, even OCD at an extreme. So it is possible that the symptoms of a low Serotonin level (due to elevated Dopamine and Norepinephrine) could be yet another cause of lover’s delirium and mania.
Gimme Back My Mojo Feeling!
So how do you keep that crazy lust delirium alive or bring it back? If you’re committed to one person, the prospect of never feeling that magic ever again is miserable! This can provoke dissatisfaction, divorce, and even affairs. In fact, Fisher suggests that we are able, naturally, to feel attachment for one person and lust for another–simultaneously. The chemicals do not have to stay consistent. So say you have an affair. Your Dopamine soars around one person and your Serotonin zooms up around another. Talk about stressful! We’re talking practically bipolar!
Well, to keep from falling too far into bonding and attachment, you could try running from the room right after you orgasm, and staying away from babies. You could also try exercising and initiating new activities with your partner to increase your Dopamine levels. Try scaring the hell out of him or her every now and then. (Oh, and I’d personally recommend that you not call your lover Snugglebutt.)
If you or your partner is on an SSRI you could consider replacing it with Welbutrin instead because it is known to raise Dopamine and Norepinephrine while suppressing Serotonin.
Pheromones…As Always, Superior
But if you like non-prescription shortcuts, pheromones are incredible. For instance, we women have a pheromone available to us that is known to increase Testosterone in men: copulins. (Perhaps Dirty would be a good mix for more men to consider as well.) We ladies already picked up on exactly how to use it–intuitively! How brilliant are we?
We can also modulate the use of bonding and comfort mixes by switching in strong sexual mixes on a regular basis. That way we keep our targets guessing, preventing them from getting too accustomed to any particular pheromone signature.
…I may write up a part III. I’d like to really consider which pheromones trigger which chemical reactions. This will be difficult because there is only limited data available. But I would love to understand it better.
Is this what Ms. Helen Fisher says, or what you say? I don’t think chemical changes cause any of those things. Cognitive schemas, such as scripts and worldviews, are the real culprits there (in short, a person’s beliefs help create their reality). It is here where cognitive psychology plays an important part in explaining human behavior, one that neuroscience has not yet matched.
All the facts are Helen Fisher’s and all the opinions are mine. And all the mistakes are mine too. But I don’t know nuffin bout why some people think neurotransmitters make other people act all funny.
Another great job. Reader’s Digest Condensed Version. Actually I told SteveO that while both books had interested info and some ideas that they really could have been trimmed down to a chapter or two …
Good job on Part 2 of your book report Kitten It was an interesting read I appreciate your efforts there on doing your book report Thanks for sharing & reps for your book report Look forward on Part 3 of your book report
Thanks fellas! I’m happy you read it. When I have more time, I’ll go back and add some pictures to it.
oh ma lawd kitten! you’re such a bookworm (which is a good thing!)
Excellent report! I learn so much from you lady!
Reps!