• Question: why do people love someone so much that they would do anything for them?

    Asked by kapayaewh to David, Helen, Ian, rhysphillips, Sarah on 14 Jun 2011.
    • Photo: Rhys Phillips

      Rhys Phillips answered on 14 Jun 2011:

      It’s a trick the brain plays on you I think 🙂

    • Photo: David Corne

      David Corne answered on 14 Jun 2011:

      In my opinion, you have to be a computer scientist to really understand this. The brain’s software is a complex parallel program that adapts its behaviour according to all kinds of signals which tend to switch it into a variety of long-lasting states or ‘modes’. The ‘loving someone like heck’ state is probably based on high levels of a neurotransmitter or two (oxytocin comes to mind – google it), which forcs the brain to run (in a sense) a certain set of programs (behaviour patterns), designed to preserve your genes. That is, either preserve them through using the ‘someone’ to pass them on, or by just protecting and nurturing the ‘someone’ who already has your genes. This state of mind tends to push common-sense out the window.

    • Photo: Ian van der Linde

      Ian van der Linde answered on 14 Jun 2011:

      People become infatuated with another person who they love because their body is telling them that this person is a good mate for them, and one day will be a good person to have children with. For that reason, our minds tell us to protect that special somebody at all costs and do whatever we can to encourage them to stay with us long enough to have children and raise them until they can fend for themselves. Which in this day and age is about 30.

    • Photo: Helen Fletcher

      Helen Fletcher answered on 14 Jun 2011:

      I think David is right!!

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